"At age 25, Kimberley Russell (not her real name), who has borderline personality disorder as well as an eating disorder and depression, has had her share of crises. The cafe, which is open every evening to anyone who needs mental health support out-of-hours, has become a lifeline.
She started coming a year ago. “I was a bit anxious to begin with,” she says. “I would only come for 15 minutes and then I would scurry out of the door. But as time has gone on, I’ve got to know people and we’re like a happy community.”...
With £600m more funding promised for mental health services in the spending review, and a portion earmarked for crisis care, interest in the cafe’s approach is growing. Last week, a second cafe opened in Camberley and five more are planned across Surrey and North East Hampshire by March 2016...
Colette Lane, a service-user representative who helped Surrey and Borders shape the project, thinks its success, especially with men – who are notoriously hard to reach – lies in its simplicity. “I think it’s popular because of the cafe environment. It’s a safe place. Going to a cafe is an acceptable thing to do.”"
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/dec/01/mental-health-problems-late-night-cafe-not-a-and-e
No comments:
Post a Comment