Alcohol Awareness Week runs from the 19th-25th November and this year’s theme is change. For Alcohol Awareness Week Penumbra’s Daniel Mushens, Recovery Practitioner at our Alcohol Related Brain Damage (ARBD) Supported Living Service, spoke to David Richardson, a Peer Volunteer diagnosed with ARBD. David discusses his personal journey of change; his life of alcoholism, adversity, … Continued
Penumbra announce a new partnership with Wattcell Futsal Club for the 2018/19 season. Wattcell Futsal Club and Penumbra have announced a new charity partnership for the 2018/19 Scottish Futsal Super League season. The partnership will feature Penumbra’s branding on all of Wattcell’s promotional materials, social media posts and training shirts, as they hope to … Continued
Today Audit Scotland released their report on Children and Young People’s Mental Health. The report highlight’s a significant increase in young people being referred to mental health services and in turn waiting times for services have increased. There has been a 22% increase in service referrals in five years and a 24% increase in referral … Continued
Today the Scottish Government released their Programme for Government. Penumbra welcomes the announcement of several investments and commitments to supporting Scotland’s Mental Health. Key strategies across mental health include: £60 million investment in mental health services across schools Creating 350 counsellor positions and an additional 250 nurses in schools Additional 80 counsellors in higher and … Continued
Self Directed Support (SDS) and Penumbra have released their Evaluation Report summarising their work in 2018. It showcases key results of Penumbra implementing Self Directed Support. Self Directed Support became law on 1st April 2014, and we believe it empowers people by giving them more control over their care and the life they want to … Continued
This morning Penumbra launched My Body My Way. Free resources to help primary schools tackle negative body image. As part of their contribution to the Scottish Government’s Year of Young People 2018, Penumbra has made their negative body image resources freely available to download. Piloted in North Ayrshire, the My Body My Way programme explores what body … Continued
Today the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland released its first ever report, looking at the care, treatment and support for people with borderline personality disorder (BPD). BPD is a type of personality disorder with a long-term pattern of unstable relationships with other people, unstable sense of self and unstable emotions. Commission staff spoke to over … Continued
July 26th saw the Penumbra ARBD Supported Accommodation service host its annual summer open day. The event gives us the opportunity to raise awareness of alcohol related brain damage to the wider community as well raising funds to go towards items chosen by the residents. We are a small service based in the socially challenged … Continued
Today, the Scottish Government have released their Suicide Prevention Action Plan. The strategy overseen by Clare Haughey, Minister for Mental Health, aims to reduce suicide by 20% from 2017 to 2020. Double the World Health Organisation target of 10%. The action plan also hopes to destigmatise suicide, making sure people who are at risk have … Continued
Penumbra is proud to announce the development of our new Peer Support Service. This new service will allow people to access support in North Ayrshire from staff with lived experience of mental ill health. The Peer Support Service will contribute towards North Ayrshire Council’s aim to provide adult mental health services that are … Continued
Outgoing President of Mental Health Europe and Penumbra Chief Executive Nigel Henderson has written to the Lancet about a report they published earlier this year. On behalf of Mental Health Europe I would like to respond to the Lancet’s Editorial (Jan 27, p 282) written about our Mapping and Understanding Exclusion report. Although we welcome … Continued
Making Recovery Real in Dundee captures the stories of 18 Dundonians who have lived experiences of mental health difficulties and recovery. The film is the centre-piece of a wider project under the same name which was established in 2015 and backed by Dundee City Council, NHS and voluntary sector partners including Penumbra. With technical backing … Continued
A social worker at Penumbra’s Milestone service has been recognised for providing outstanding support to people recovering from the effects of alcohol addiction. Ian Jeffries was last night (20 March 2018) named Social Worker of the Year by the Scottish Association of Social Work (SASW). He was handed the title at the organisation’s annual awards … Continued
People experience distress for many reasons – relationship breakdowns, financial pressure, depression, and much more. But where can people in distress go to get help? The mental health charity Penumbra has produced a short video which explores one answer to this question – Distress Brief Intervention (DBI). To find out how this new service works, … Continued
#MENtionIt is a new campaign to encourage men in Grampian who are experiencing a crisis to contact Penumbra’s 1st Response services. 1st Response launched in Grampian in 2016. It provides discreet, short term, practical support to people in distress. It is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Although anyone can contact 1st Response for … Continued
Self harm is often a private and personal act, and many people who self harm struggle to approach others for help. To mark Self Harm Awareness Day 2018 (1 March 2018), we wanted to do something to increase understanding and awareness around self harm, and to reduce stigma. The team at the Self Harm … Continued
A critically acclaimed film which hopes to tackle the massive surge in body confidence issues around the globe will be shown on the big screen in Aberdeen for the first time this month. Scottish mental health charity Penumbra has teamed up with the Body Image Movement to offer the free screenings of the feel-good documentary … Continued
Mental Health Europe – a non-governmental network which works with the EU and other international bodies to promote positive mental health – has published an analysis of mental health care across the continent. Mapping and Understanding Exclusion in Europe provides a unique insight into European mental health systems, ongoing human rights violations and the changes … Continued
We are seeking donations to raise money for our vital mental health work in Aberdeen. Donations will be sold at a week-long pop-up charity shop in Aberdeen (Monday 5 February – Friday 9 February). All money raised will go towards supporting people to take part in community activities, such as our New Shoots Gardening Project. … Continued
A film featuring people supported by Penumbra has won a prestigious international film award. In Place examines the mechanisms people use to cope with mental health difficulties, exploring the line between the positive and the negative. The film follows three people – a young skateboarder, a university student and a retired librarian – who all … Continued