Mayor's charity appeal 2023/24
During my term of office, I have chosen to support Andy's Man Club. I may also share some of the money raised with other local charities that I may visit throughout my mayoral year:
Andy’s Man Club
#ITSOKAYTOTALK
On average one man every 2 hours takes his life in the UK. It is often said a factor is that men don’t talk and Andy’s Man Club was created to break down these stigmas.
In mid-2016, a group of nine men gathered in a small room in Halifax, Yorkshire. Their aim was simple: to discuss their issues and support each other with their mental health.
They recognised the power of their conversations and wanted to share it with others. This marked the beginning of a movement that has grown beyond expectations. Today, ANDYSMANCLUB has groups in almost 100 locations across three UK counties.
ANDYSMANCLUB is named after Andrew Roberts, a young man who tragically took his own life at the age of 23 in 2016. His family was unaware of his struggles and delved into the issue of male suicide and men's mental health. They discovered that male suicide is the leading cause of death for men under 50, and that there is a deeply ingrained cultural stigma surrounding men's mental health in the UK.
Elaine Roberts and Luke Ambler, Andy's mother and brother-in-law, collaborated to create ANDYSMANCLUB. It is a support group in a non-judgmental and non-clinical setting. Here men aged 18 and above can have open discussions about their mental health.
The groups, now established throughout the country, are run entirely by volunteers. Many of the group facilitators have personally experienced the benefits of ANDYSMANCLUB as service users before taking on their roles.
With a service used on a weekly basis by almost 2000 men, and an army of over 500 facilitators, the movement is continuing to grow on a week-by-week basis.
At ANDYSMANCLUB, our goal is to remove the stigma around mental health. We provide a safe, confidential environment for men to openly discuss their struggles. Through our free weekly support groups, we foster peer-to-peer support for men aged 18 and above.