Minutes:
In accordance with the Committee’s decision of 9th October, it was reported that Mr. Joe Donnelly, from TAMHI, was in attendance to provide an overview of the organisation’s work in regard to the power of sport to promote positive mental fitness.
Mr. Donnelly commenced by advising that TAMHI stood for Tackling Awareness of Mental Health Issues. He detailed that the charity had been established in 2011 in memory of Thomas ‘Tammy Tucker’ McLaughlin who sadly had taken his own life in 2009.
The representative explained that TAMHI worked with sports groups to help them support the development of an infrastructure that would support positive mental fitness. He outlined the following key aims of promoting positive mental health in and through sport:
· to raise awareness within sport of the importance of positive mental fitness and how this could have an impact on physical health;
· to engage young people and young men in sport to reach out to those with mental health concerns;
· to raise awareness of the risks of self-harm and the importance of suicide prevention within sport;
· to highlight the importance of training with Governing Bodies, Mental Health Groups and clubs for their coaches and volunteers, to support them in spotting early signs of emotional difficulty and risk in current participants; and
· to create an environment where people could ask for help and support when needed.
The Committee was advised that TAMHI understood the importance of participation in sport and the positive contribution that it could make to an individual’s welfare, this was especially relevant if their experience was one that reflected the many positive values of sport, to name but a few, fun, friendship, commitment, honesty, teamwork, fair competition and inclusion.
The representative then drew the Members’ attention to a research study that TAMHI had undertaken in conjunction with the Ulster University that assessed if a mental health awareness programme enhanced wellbeing and reduced anxiety amongst footballers. He advised that twelve football clubs had been randomly selected and six weeks of intervention had been conducted. This had included two mental health sessions per week that had been developed by TAMHI and the following issues had been addressed: stress, bi-polar disorder, drug misuse, alcohol abuse, gambling, suicide awareness, resilience, the importance of mental fitness, bullying and the importance of asking for help. He reported that the research had demonstrated that intervention was an effective method of enhancing wellbeing and reducing anxiety. The implementation of the intervention, alongside football, had proved that, when combined, both improved mental and physical health.
Mr. Donnelly then advised the Committee of new programme ‘Schools in the Community’. He explained that this programme was aimed at empowering young people to raise awareness of mental health through play. The project aimed to promote good relations, positive mental health and to tackle social issues such as bullying. He reported that the programme was aligned to LORIC (Leadership, Organisation, Resilience, Initiative and Communication) and it aimed to advance the skills in young people by making them stand out and support them in the delivery of programmes to their peers. Phase one was the delivery of the Mental Wealth Games and phase two was the ILM Youth Leaders Award Level two.
The representative concluded his presentation by outlining the following challenges that TAMHI as an organisation faced:
· it was solely grant dependant;
· it had no protect life II – therefore no opportunity to tender for contracts to deliver services as the organisation currently had no PHA access;
· limited fundraising ability; and
· extremely limited staff resources.
He advised that, apart from himself, there was also two other positions, a Resilient Active Youth Post – 16 hours and ICT Support position – 6 hours. Funding for those two positions had expired in December 2018 and he was currently trying to keep the positions open until June 2019.
During questions, the representative confirmed that he currently accessed Council funding through the small grants programme, however, he was keen to investigate if more sustainable funding was available in order to ensure the long-term future sustainability of the organisation.
He stated that he would welcome the opportunity to explore with Council officers how the work of TAMHI might fit with the Council’s Peace IV programme and he would also welcome the opportunity to meet with the Council’s Commissioner for Resilience.
The Chairperson thanked the representative for his informative presentation and he left the meeting.
The Director of City Services undertook to liaise with other Council officers to ascertain of links could be established which would assist TAMHI in working with the Council to maximise its opportunities and to add value to its work.