Mental Health Friendly Places

A Mental Health Friendly Place is a public-facing organisation or community touch point in Leicester, Leicestershire or Rutland that has received training, resources and support to confidently navigate conversations around low-level mental health and wellbeing.

In completing the free training and becoming a Mental Health Friendly Place, each organisation will be able to recognise signs and symptoms of poor mental health, ask appropriate questions, listen effectively and signpost to local mental health and wellbeing services. This means customers, members or visitors can feel comfortable and supported to talk about whatever is on their mind, and find out where to access further support if necessary.

Mental Health Friendly Places understands that by simply creating a safe environment to talk, we can support people in their day-to-day life by giving them an opportunity to open up whilst they're out and about, ultimately helping to prevent people from reaching a point of crisis.

If you work or volunteer at an organisation that engages with the public (this doesn't have to be a fixed place!) and are interested in becoming a Mental Health Friendly Place, please download and read the information pack below to learn more about the programme and training offer.

Below you can see the organisations in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland that have achieved Mental Health Friendly Places status.

Saffron Acres - Leicester City

''We have a small but dedicated staff team, who come from a variety of backgrounds and with different experiences. As a charity, it can sometimes be a little harder to find opportunities for funded training that is relevant to our job roles, and this is where the MHFP experience has really shined. Not only has the training enabled our team to gain uniform understandings so we are all on the same page, it has allowed us to become more confident when we are engaging people that visit us and access our services. It has been directly relevant in the mental health projects we run, but helps support all our other projects we engage people in.''

Pepper's A Safe Place - Leicestershire County

''I found the mental health awareness course very enlightening and helpful with lots of strategies suggested for people who are struggling with depression, anxiety and stress. I was also made aware of how important it is to look after my own mental health. After attending the course, I felt more confident and able to support and listen to someone who was feeling very distressed and overwhelmed."

If you would like to become a Mental Health Friendly Place, please register with Start a Conversation and then complete our registration survey. A member of the team will review this and will be in touch via email.

Follow the link below to start your registration.

The Keep Safe Place is a local partnership scheme across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, which helps people to deal with incidents that take place while they are out and about in the community. The scheme is aimed at helping people feel confident and safe knowing that assistance is available. The Keep Safe Place Scheme is a network of shops, libraries, cafes and suitable locations who have agreed to make their premises a 'Safe Place' for those that feel vulnerable within our communities.