Mind in Tower Hamlets and Newham unites with Prince’s Trust to offer young people new mental health support

Chris Harris Prince's Trust (Image: Sean Malyon)

One-to-one counselling will be offered by MiTHN to boost the confidence, communication and personal development of young people living in Newham and Tower Hamlets.

In addition, the mental health charity will facilitate regular peer support groups at The Prince’s Trust Morgan Stanley centre, based in Bow Common, which will be led by beneficiaries of The Trust.

Newham resident Matthew David, 23, who is currently taking part in the sessions, said: “I was stuck at home with nothing to do and struggling with low self-esteem.

“When I joined the group sessions, I was able to open myself up to new friends and felt welcomed into the group.

“It’s going well so far, and we’ve talked about a lot of things that I’ve found helpful – like coping with failure.

“It is ok to fail – it’s your first attempt at learning and can lead you to your next opportunity, teaching me not just to focus on the negative.”

The Prince’s Trust Youth Index, published in January 2016, revealed 45 per cent of young Londoners have experienced a mental health issue.

Of those, 41pc said they didn’t seek any support while 33pc of young people who did seek help said it took more than six months to receive the correct care from family, friends, teachers, colleagues or health professionals.

Chris Harris, The Prince’s Trust mental health advisor, said: “We will be monitoring the impact this new mental health support has on the wellbeing, confidence and personal development of young people in east London, in order to increase and strengthen the support we can provide to the young people we work with across the UK.”

The pilot project is being funded by the Berkeley Foundation.

To find out further information, visit mithn.org.uk or princes-trust.org.uk