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OTHERWISE DELETE BOX

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COMPANY NAME HERE

Text MHI to 50300 to donate €4 to

Mental Health Ireland. 100% of text goes to MHI across most network providers. Some providers apply vat which

means that a minimum of €3.26 will go to MHI. Service provider: likecharity. Helpline 01

4433890

Did you know…

“Mental and behavioural disorders are

found in people of all regions, all countries

and all societies. They are present in men

and woman at all stages of the life

course. They are present among the rich

and the poor, and among people living in

urban and rural areas”. WHO

National and international studies suggest

that 25% of the population will experience a

mental health difficulty at some point in their

lives. 44% of people in Ireland have had a

direct experience of mental health

problems.

It is estimated that the direct annual costs of

poor mental health in Ireland was €3Bn in

2006, or 2% of GNP.

Promoting public mental health will improve

wellbeing in the general population, reduce

the prevalence of mental illness, promote

recovery and reduce the stigma associated

with mental health problems (Royal College

of Psychiatrists, 2010).

World Mental Health Day Toolkit

5th – 12th October 2014

What is World Mental Health Day?

World Mental Health Day is celebrated on the 10th of October every year

worldwide. It was created by the World Federation for Mental Health

(WFMH) to generate awareness around mental health issues.

Mental Health Ireland (MHI) celebrates World Mental Health Day each

year by developing a number of events in the week of the 6th-10th

October nationally and through our Mental Health Associations.

MHI’s campaign for 2014 is ‘Plan to Protect Your Mental Wellbeing’. We

have highlighted five actions and activities to incorporate into your daily

life that can help manage and monitor your mental health and wellbeing.

Why is your mental health so important?

People mostly think of mental health as negative mental health. This is

not the case. We all have mental health, sometimes it is good and we

are well and other times it is not so good and we struggle.

Good mental health isn’t about avoiding problems or trying to achieve

the ‘perfect’ life. It’s about living well and feeling capable despite

challenges.

Maintaining your mental health is a lot like staying physically fit: it

requires a little effort every day and finding balance in your life. Investing

time in yourself to improve your mental health is one of the best

investments you’ll make – not only for you but for those around you too.

Do you need to talk to someone about your mental health?

Support comes in many forms including family, friends, teachers and

mentors. Sometimes we may need some professional support from a

psychotherapist or counsellor. You will find a list of mental health

organisations with trained mental health staff in this link

http://www.mentalhealthireland.ie/information/finding-support.html

Raise some money World Mental Health Day is a perfect opportunity to raise funds for your

local Mental Health Association or for Mental Health Ireland. All money

raised will go directly back into the promotion of mental health in your local

community and nationally.

You need to ensure you are collecting funds legally and adhering to MHI’s

event standards. Here is a brief outline of your obligations:

Raffles:

You do not need a licence to sell tickets for a raffle at a big event

where the raffle forms a smaller part. You must sell the tickets and

draw the prize at the event. This also applies to raffles to members

of a local club, at private events or at work.

You must apply for a licence to your local council for large scale

lotteries where you are selling tickets to the public.

Collections:

For collections in a supermarket, pub or shop seek the permission

of the manager.

Street collections require permission from the local council

Door-to-door collections require a permit from the council

Alcohol:

You will need a licence if selling alcohol at your event.

Food safety:

If preparing or serving food at your event please read these food

safety guidelines from Safe Food http://www.safefood.eu/Food-

safety.aspx

Get sponsorship for your event

You may need sponsorship for your event in the form of a venue, food,

beverages, goods or services. The first place you should look is your

network of friends, family and local community. We are firm believers

“If you don’t ask, you’ll never know” so don’t be afraid to ask!

Here are some guidelines when approaching potential sponsors:

Have a clear vision of your event and be able to explain it well

including where all funding raised will be donated.

Approach each sponsor with a specific ask. Detail what you would

like from them and why.

Ensure potential sponsors are compatible with your event and your

goals.

Think about which businesses might benefit from a partnership with

you going forward and how you can add value to them.

Identify successful businesses/ services in your local community

including supermarkets, banks or sports groups who may have a

charity fund.

Planning an event There are many types of events you can host

or run to support World Mental Health Week.

By hosting an event you are raising awareness

of mental health amongst your friends, families,

community and peers.

You don’t need to have struggled with your

mental health to organise an event and you

don’t need to be an event planner either. Here

are some ideas you can get involved with

during the week:

1. Organise a singing event to support the

National Choral Singing Week

http://www.aoic.ie/festivals_events_initi

atives/national_choral_singing_week/

2. This can be a coffee morning with a

sing-song or if you are in a choir you

can put on a show!

3. Host a ‘Walk and Talk’ or ‘Tea and

Chat’ event.

4. Host a positive mental health talk

inviting the community to attend.

Topics could include Mindfulness,

Stress or Anxiety

5. Host a quiz night in a local community

hall

6. Organise a football/hurling/ rugby blitz

with your local clubs

7. Produce Positive Mental Health

displays for local schools, libraries,

sports centres, hospitals and

community centres.

Keep it safe

1. If you’re hosting a public event it’s

worthwhile conducting a risk

assessment to plan for any

eventualities that may arise.

2. You need to think about accessibility

and if you are covered by public liability

insurance. MHI members have access

to use our Public Liability Insurance.

3. Provide appropriate supervision for

children and at-risk adults.

Planning an event

October 2014

#plantoprotect

Promoting your event

October 2014

#plantoprotect

Share your story

Tell us about your event

We will be developing an online national calendar of events to

promote Mental Health Ireland’s activities throughout World

Mental Health Week.

Please send us your activities by 19th September so we can add

them to our calendar on our website.

We would also love to hear how your event went and to see some

photos or videos once it’s all over! Send all event information to

jilloherlihy@mentalhealthireland.ie

Spread the word on social media

If you are hosting an event what better way to spread the word

than over Facebook and Twitter to your social networks.

When tweeting please use the hashtag #plantoprotect and link

our calendar of events page on our website where possible.

You can create an event page for your event on Facebook

inviting your friends and also post updates to your page.

During the week we will be posting information on our social

networks about what is happening around the country and linking

your events to our Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Use your local networks Local schools, libraries, colleges, councils, community

organisations and businesses may agree to promote your event

on their websites, newsletters or noticeboards.

Remember, if you don’t ask, you’ll never know!

Local media Contact your local paper and radio station with information about

your event for their notice announcements.

MHI Development Officers are available for media interviews

locally and will be pitched to local media in advance.

If your local media outlet is looking for a spokesperson or press release please direct them to

Mental Health Ireland’s Head of Communications Jill O’Herlihy - jilloherlihy@mentalhealthireland.ie 01 284 1166

Text MHI to 50300 to

donate €4 to

Mental Health Ireland. 100% of text goes to MHI across most network

providers. Some providers apply vat which means

that a minimum of €3.26 will go to MHI. Service

provider: likecharity. Helpline 01 4433890

PLACE PHOTO HERE,

OTHERWISE DELETE BOX

Sample media material for your event

World Mental Health Day press release template

Plan to Protect information and activity

Media tips

Phone your local media organisation to

get the best contact information to suit

your event. This may be the notices in

advance and the health/lifestyle

correspondent for the event information.

Keep it snappy. A long press release will

be glossed over.

Use quotes from relevant people… well

known people are always of interest.

Don’t over-hype your story… keep it simple

and factual.

Let them know if there is a photo

opportunity at your event and invite them

along.

Here are more fun event ideas

Happiness in Kindness – A free kindness workshop where

attendees receive a Kindness Journal to record their everyday

acts of kindness.

Stress Less Fest – teaming up with local sports, arts and crafts,

music and dance professionals, host a workshop where

participants learn of the mental health benefits of these activities

helping them gain a holistic understanding of health and

wellbeing.

Express yourself – host events at schools and colleges where

students can express their thoughts on mental health and

wellbeing via art, music, dance, song, writing or drama. Put on an

exhibition to showcase all the talent

Balloon release – take a walk about in your community with some

helium balloons. Ask members of the public to write a worry of

theirs on a tag, tie it to the balloon and release it. This makes for

some great photos too so get snapping!

At your event…

October 2014

#plantoprotect

JILL O’HERLIHY Head of Communications

jilloherlihy@mentalhealthireland.ie

01 284 1166 / 087 795 7717

https://twitter.com/MentalHealthIrl

https://www.facebook.com/Mental.Health.Ireland

Text MHI to 50300 to donate €4 to

Mental Health Ireland. 100% of text goes to MHI across most network providers. Some

providers apply vat which means that a minimum of €3.26 will go to MHI.

Service provider: likecharity. Helpline 01 4433890

MENTAL HEALTH IRELAND Mensana House

2 Marine Tce

Dun Laoghaire

Co Dublin

PLACE LOGO OR PHOTO HERE

Looking after yourself and others at your event Be Prepared

If you do not have experience of dealing with

mental health queries it would be a good idea to

have someone on your team who has some

experience of this.

Is there a requirement for some peer support in

the event someone attending needs to talk to

someone?

Practice respectful communication

Listen actively to what people are saying, trying

not to draw comparison to your experience.

Know your boundaries

Think in advance about what your boundaries are.

What do you feel comfortable talking about? What

do you need more information on? If you need to

refer someone for support do you have that

information to hand?

Be honest about your limitations… it’s ok not to

know everything.

Look after yourself and your team

Get together before your event and develop a plan

to relieve your team of their duties every hour for a

break.

Keep an eye out for each other at the event

Have one point of contact for any emergency that

may occur and be sure to communicate who this

person is and a contact umber for him/her.

Finally, don’t forget to have fun yourselves!