Mind in Kingston

From managing the Mind United football team to hosting comedy workshops, Mind in Kingston offers some unusual services to support adults in our community with mental health issues. But for some it even provides a home that allows them to manage their own daily living, right here in Surbiton.

Affiliated to national Mind, the charity works in partnership with statutory services and other local voluntary organisations on a range of projects to help local people who are experiencing mental distress, their families, carers and friends.

Whether that’s supporting the acute ward at Tolworth Hospital or offering evening counselling for those who can’t access services during the day, the charity puts the service user at the heart of its planning for local mental health provision.

For those with more complex issues who are supported by Community Mental Health Teams, Mind in Kingston provides places in three homes where residents can live more independently in shared accommodation. Its Surbiton home, Carisbrooke House in Ditton Road, is currently shared by five residents with support on a regular basis.

No referral is necessary for Mind’s drop-in cafés at two venues in the borough, including the Star Café at the Alfriston Day Centre in Berrylands Road. And those who simply want to improve their general wellbeing can book a course at the Wellbeing Wednesday workshops at the Noble Centre in New Malden.
Current workshops include mindfulness, anxiety management, art therapy, and positive thinking and meditation, as well as a weekly Wellbeing Forum. Coming up soon will be an ‘expert patients’ course aimed at supporting people with long-term health problems, as well as workshops on sound painting and on wellbeing and laughter.

As Counselling Services Coordinator responsible for Wellbeing Wednesdays, Vicky Bourne (pictured above right) says the £1,500 that Surbiton Farmers’ Market contributed towards the project in 2015 has been put to good use: ‘It’s wonderful to be able to offer such a wide variety of therapeutic workshops. In the past few months 60-70 people have accessed these courses and, in general, we receive excellent feedback.’

One Wellbeing Wednesday service user commented: ‘Mindfulness has been one of the best things I’ve done, and it’s especially good for my anxiety. I’m still practising it at home, and am really feeling the benefits. I would rate [the workshop] very highly in terms of teaching and content, and it has been one of the best techniques for my own issues.’