No Mind Left Behind

We’re in the middle of a mental health crisis.

Two million people are currently stuck on waiting lists for NHS mental health services and, on top of this, the stigma associated with mental health is still a significant issue that sees real people with mental health problems being left behind by a broken mental health system.

They need support now. Not in six months’ time. Not in a year. Now. So this World Mental Health Day, we’re asking you to join the fight for mental health.

A united front for mental health

At Mind – and across our network of over 100 local Minds (independent charities in local communities across England and Wales) – we provide a range of services and support for people experiencing mental health problems.

On our own we can’t reach everyone – the scale of the challenge is huge – but with political and systemic change, we can create a future where no mind is left behind, and that's why we've chosen this as the title this year's campaign.

Given the strength of evidence the role sport and physical activity can play in the treatment of many mental health problems, this sector can be part of the solution alongside medication, talking therapies and peer support.

Energised by the Mental Health Charter for Sport and Recreation and Uniting the Movement, along with campaigns such as We Are Undefeatable, the sector is already delivering programmes across the whole of the mental health spectrum – from prevention to recovery – with the potential to do more.

But for the sport and physical activity sector to be able to support the increased demand for mental health services, it needs to show it is safe and effective.

Not just physically, but psychologically too, with the mental health and wellbeing of everyone involved being front and centre.
 

There are many examples from clubs on how to do this well, with informal support such as check-ins and peer networks for deliverers, or more formal support such as values-based recruitment, regular supervision and peer reflection.

But this isn’t consistent everywhere.

There are examples where physical activity deliverers don’t have the skills, knowledge, confidence or help from their organisations to safely and effectively support mental health.

We want to support the whole sector to embed the very best practices and learn from one another, so that the strong skills, knowledge and confidence to safely and effectively support the mental health of both the workforce and participants is the norm.

Sadly, mental health problems are more prevalent in the sector’s workforce than the wider working population, with studies showing approximately one in four – or even as much as 44% of the sector are experiencing mental health problems – compared to one in six people in the wider working population.

To help organisations better support their workforce, we are co-designing guidance on how to safely and effectively support the mental health of both participants and the workforce across sport, physical activity and movement settings.

We hope this will contribute to strengthening the trust and connection between mental health services and community sport and physical activity.

What we’re doing

We’ve taken practical steps to make this endeavour come true and have brought together stakeholders to explore current practices.

People with lived experience of mental health problems are at the heart of this (both adults and young people) along with frontline coaches and deliverers.

Over 44 sport sector organisations and 36 mental health organisations have taken part so far.

We’ve hosted focus groups, workshops and interviews to understand what good practice looks like and what support is available to participants and the workforce in:

• community open sessions (e.g. sessions in leisure centres, parks and community settings)
• community targeted ‘mental health’ sessions (e.g. walk & talk sessions, mental wellbeing football)
• primary care sessions (e.g. targeted ‘mental health’ social prescribing activities or physical activity delivered alongside NHS Talking Therapies)
• secondary care sessions (e.g. community and inpatient physical activity sessions).

What’s coming next?

We’re in the process of playing back what we’ve heard through the co-design process and refining the guidance based on feedback.

We’re also working with colleagues in the health sector to understand how this guidance fits with their own policy and practices, and we plan to launch the recommendations and supporting resources in 2025.

We’re also working with organisations such as the Chartered Institute for Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) and Sport England to identify how we can support the sector to adopt this guidance.

With increasing demands on mental health services, physical activity and movement could help ease the pressure on the NHS, but it can only work if it’s safe and effective for everybody – not just for the people accessing the activities, but also for those delivering it.

Please feel free to reach out if you want to hear more about this or any other of our projects.