Local homelessness charity, Emmaus North East is proud to announce a new partnership with Anxious Minds, a leading mental health charity in the region, to offer dedicated counselling services to the people they support, along with volunteers.

This vital service, made possible through a grant from the Newcastle Building Society Community Fund at the Community Foundation Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, will provide timely and professional mental health support, significantly reducing waiting times for those in need.

Emmaus North East, a charity that provides a home, meaningful work opportunities, and individual support to people who have experienced homelessness and social exclusion, is committed to offering a holistic support package. The introduction of this counselling service will ensure that companions (people helped by the charity) and volunteers, receive the confidential, professional help they need without the delays often associated with accessing mental health services.

“Anxious Minds supports thousands of people across the North East with mental health issues. Working in partnership with Emmaus North East will allow us to reach areas we are currently not supporting. Together, we can better support the community and make a real difference in people’s lives.”

Eddie Dean, Chief Executive of Anxious Minds, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership

This collaboration is a significant step forward in the mission to provide comprehensive support to the companions at Emmaus North East. By addressing mental health needs promptly and effectively, the partnership will help empower individuals to rebuild their lives with the confidence and stability they deserve.

“The counselling is really helping me, she (the counsellor) just let me talk for 50 minutes which is what I needed, usually people don’t have 50 minutes to listen to someone ramble on. She helped me to work out how to turn negative situations into a positive and I feel like it’s helping me to work things out.”

Ash, a 27 year old former companion of Emmaus North East is currently using the service

The partnership is possible due to a grant from the Newcastle Building Society Community Fund.

“Emmaus is a fantastic charity doing incredible work to tackle homelessness in our region, so we’re delighted to support their new partnership with Anxious Minds through our Community Fund.

“Homelessness is one of our five strategic community priorities alongside food poverty, the environment, work and opportunity, and debt management, each of which we seek to support through a range of initiatives including colleague volunteering, partnerships, fundraising, and our Community Fund.

“Customers of the Society are eligible to nominate charities for funding and I know many members passionately support projects like this, which help create long term positive change in our communities.”

Donna Stubbs, Community Manager at Newcastle Building Society

For more information about the work of Emmaus North East, visit: www.emmaus.org.uk/north-east


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