Urban Villages Focus Magazine ISSUE 9

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Supporting mental health and well-being initiatives North Belfast has been deeply affected by recent tragic events linked to mental health issues, but community organisations in the Urban Villages area have rallied round to step up their work on mental health and wellbeing. Recent events included: • Information and support sessions in local youth clubs and R-City • Ardoyne Youth Club leafleting its neighbourhood with information on crisis support helplines • Mental health champions coffee morning in Mercy College with YEHA (Youth Education Health Advice) • Streetbeat Youth Centre’s work with young men at Boys’ Model during Children’s Mental Health Week • Women’s Tec Mind Your Head information session for women

The Urban Villages Initiative supports ongoing mental health and well-being programmes, including: • Healthy living initiatives in both Ardoyne and Ballysillan • The joint Youth Access programme by New Life Counselling and Jigsaw Community Counselling, which fast-tracks young people to counselling services • Carezone in Schools, a peer mentoring partnership between Streetbeat, Yeha, Mercy College and Girls Model. Carezone in Schools was recently nominated for the Aisling Awards Urban Villages Ambassadors award

A list of useful helplines is available on helplinesni.com. • Lifeline has a 24 hour service: 0808 808 8000 . • PIPS Charity, based on the Antrim Road, can be contacted on 028 9080 5850. • To refer young people to the Youth Access Programme, contact New Life Counselling 028 90391630 , or Jigsaw 028 9543 8166 .

TEDx Stormont Women – Bold and Brilliant

Maire Thompson North Belfast

and went on to judge the competition in 2019. Her approach is based on a strong moral compass and a core belief in the positive potential of education. She recognizes there is talent in every child and sees the teachers’ role as helping to draw out and encourage this talent.

Principal and Educator Talk: It takes a village to raise a child Maire Thompson has been involved in teaching for 23 years. After some early childhood adversity Maire went on to win the UK Head teacher of the Year in 2017

TEDx Stormont Women – Bold and Brilliant https://youtu.be/Q0uzpEN7cfs

Urban Villages Initiative | Focus Magazine Issue 9