This campaign has now closed
Aimed at improving the health and well-being of people in the area with emotional or mental distress. The West Somerset Inclusion Project will help ensure there is access to healthy lifestyles and a choice about the kind of mental health support people in the area receive. It will tackle the particular problems of rural isolation that effect this area.
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The West Somerset Inclusion Project is a major local initiative aimed at encouraging people to participate in, and connect with their local communities. Services include drop-in support groups across West Somerset, advice and information about mental health issues, a listening service for those with emotional distress, and workshops to raise awareness of mental health issues for the wider community. Volunteers are also being recruited who will assist users of the services in confidence building, and to accompany them to meetings, new groups or activities with the eventual aim that these will be accessed independently. The Office for National Statistics has estimated that in Somerset one in three people auffers psychological distress at any one time compared to one in seven nationally. There is even greater variation in the provision of health and social care services to the very rural parts of West Somerset. Overall they are less likely to receive services comparale to those offered in towns. Obstacles include the increased costs in time and transport to access services and lack of alternative voluntary sector provision.