Titled ‘Pandora’s Box’, the concept of the exhibition is based on the story of Pandora – in classic Greek mythology – believed to be the first woman on earth. The “box” was a large jar given to Pandora which contained all the evils of the world. ‘Opening Pandora’s box’ is used culturally to indicate the perils of curiosity and also unleashing the evils of the world. What most people forget is that when Pandora opened the jar, all its contents except for one item were released into the world. The one remaining item was HOPE.

Eve McDougall, curator at Together’s Our Space gallery and an artist featuring in the exhibition, said: “This exhibition personally resonated with me due to my own personal experiences as a survivor of domestic violence and abuse. Art was a tool for me – it helped me to escape from the overpowering feelings and as for many of the female artists in this exhibition, it gave me hope for recovery”.

Paintings and mixed media work will feature from artists and mental health service users from the following organisations: Together, Inter-Action MK, Mount Carmel Technology College, The Clothesline Project, Creative and Supportive Trust (CAST), Clean Break, Holloway Day Centre, The Butterfly Foundation, Rainbow Pathways, The Silk Group, The Haven Wolverhampton, Women in Special Hospital (WISH), Northumbria probation services and individual artists.

Heart of Gold, Karen Hierons

Davina James-Hanman, AVA Director said: “For women experiencing abuse and mental health issues, the process of producing art can help to them to cope with their experiences and create something beautiful out of something so painful.For those viewing the art, the exhibition is a hopeful one, providing the positive message that there is recovery, there is a new beginning and there is life after abuse.”

Karen Hierons, contributing artist and Together service user speaking of her piece “Heart of Gold” said: “Ever since I was a child I have experienced physical and mental abuse. It was as if no one saw me – I had no face, I was invisible – but what kept me going was hope; the one thing that no one could take away from me.”

Black eye 1

Sarah Wright, contributing artist, commenting on her piece “Black eye 1” said: “I painted black eyes from images of myself – my visual language helped me to describe the experiences I had been subjected to; the process enabled me to find a new way of making sense of it all from a different perspective”.

For further information please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7376/07734 870 065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

Women survivors of violence and abuse who have used art as a means of finding hope despite their experiences, as well as females who have used their art to create awareness of the issue, are to have their work exhibited in central London as a collaboration between mental health charity Together and AVA (Against Violence & Abuse).

Titled ‘Pandora’s Box’, the concept of the exhibition is based on the story of Pandora – in classic Greek mythology – believed to be the first woman on earth. The “box” was a large jar given to Pandora which contained all the evils of the world. ‘Opening Pandora’s box’ is used culturally to indicate the perils of curiosity and also unleashing the evils of the world. What most people forget is that when Pandora opened the jar, all its contents except for one item were released into the world. The one remaining item was HOPE.

Eve McDougall, curator at Together’s Our Space gallery and an artist featuring in the exhibition, said: “This exhibition personally resonated with me due to my own personal experiences as a survivor of domestic violence and abuse. Art was a tool for me – it helped me to escape from the overpowering feelings and as for many of the female artists in this exhibition, it gave me hope for recovery”.

Paintings and mixed media work will feature from artists and mental health service users from the following organisations: Together, Inter-Action MK, Mount Carmel Technology College, The Clothesline Project, Creative and Supportive Trust (CAST), Clean Break, Holloway Day Centre, The Butterfly Foundation, Rainbow Pathways, The Silk Group, The Haven Wolverhampton, Women in Special Hospital (WISH), Northumbria probation services and individual artists.

Davina James-Hanman, AVA Director said:

“For women experiencing abuse and mental health issues, the process of producing art can help to them to cope with their experiences and create something beautiful out of something so painful. For those viewing the art, the exhibition is a hopeful one, providing the positive message that there is recovery, there is a new beginning and there is life after abuse.”

Karen Hierons, contributing artist and Together service user speaking of her piece “Heart of Gold” said:

Ever since I was a child I have experienced physical and mental abuse. It was as if no one saw me – I had no face, I was invisible – but what kept me going was hope; the one thing that no one could take away from me.”

Sarah Wright, contributing artist, commenting on her piece “Black eye 1” said: “I painted black eyes from images of myself – my visual language helped me to describe the experiences I had been subjected to; the process enabled me to find a new way of making sense of it all from a different perspective”.

The exhibition runs from Friday 27 April – Thursday 24 May and is open Monday – Friday 10.30am – 5pm at The Together Our Space Gallery: 12 Old Street, London EC1V. Admission is free. Nearest tube is Barbican.

For further information please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7376/07734 870 065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

‘

Cranstoun supports more than 15,000 people each year to recover from drug and alcohol dependence, people like Charlie, Mark, M&M and all the other artists involved in this art exhibition.

Cranstoun was first established in 1969, by a community of concerned parents and residents of Esher, Surrey. Dr Michael Dixon and his wife Annie started the ball rolling, together with local friends and family, by allowing their house to be established as a therapeutic community. Cranstoun offered help and hope then and continues to do so today, to those affected by drug and alcohol dependency throughout England.

The organisation provides a range of services for those affected by drugs and alcohol dependance but wishing to make positive changes in their lives. Recovery from dependency is perceived and experienced in different ways. This idea was used in a photo competition launched last year. The six winning photos were voted for by the general public via an online competition which were then featured in the Cranstoun 2012 calendar.

Following the success of the project, service users were offered the chance to feature their artwork, as a way of expressing their journey towards recovery. Cranstoun strongly believes that art provides service users with a valuable means of expressing themselves and supporting their recovery, whether it is in the form of paintings, poems, craft work or music. In services we also encourage creative expression as a way to develop structure and purpose.

Rossell, Chief Executive of Cranstoun says:

Every person has a different recovery journey from drug and alcohol dependence and experiences this in unique ways. The range of artwork is impressive and displays this range of individual experience. Some of them are quite dark but always with touches of colour, signs that hope for change is present. I hope that these expressions of recovery will show the positive side of those going through the treatment journey, demonstrate that clients are talented and have so much to give.”

M & M, service users at Cranstoun Recovery@28B say:

We’re submitting a clay sculpture of two people coming out of substance misuse. I am excited about this project! I actually have a lot of sculptures at home that I have not finished. It’s like a fear factor thing going on. If they never get finished, they have to get put out. So it’s good for me to have a project like this with a deadline and it’s also nice to do it with somebody else in this case. This art exhibition project goes alongside my treatment: it brings me discipline and structure.”

For further information please either visit: http://www.cranstoun.org/custom/exhibition/Welcome.html or contact Sophie Erpicum, Cranstoun Communications Manager, tel: 020 8335 1830 or serpicum@cranstoun.org.uk.

Voluntary sector organisations submitted funding bids to the Department of Health setting out how they could help their communities by improving care for thousands of vulnerable people.

The money will be used to continue the development of Together’s existing and future ‘Your Way’ services; an innovative new way of providing mental health support which is built around the individual’s needs and goals.

Said Together CEO Liz Felton: “We’re delighted to have received the support from the Department of Health for this groundbreaking work. Your Way supports people to think creatively about their future and help them find ways to stay well. We believe people with mental health issues can and should lead independent and fulfilling lives, and Your Way helps them achieve that.”

Announcing the funding Paul Burstow said:

“This will improve the lives of thousands of people across England, helping them to lead healthier and more independent lives. It is crucial that we continue to champion our voluntary organisations, because their expertise allows them to design and develop innovative solutions to the big challenges we face in health, public health and social care.

“These exciting projects are more than worthy of our support and I am delighted that the money will be spent on providing individuals and local communities with the tools to tackle health and well being.”

Notes to Editors:

For further information, please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing Officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7376/07734 870065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

The money comes from the Department’s Innovation, Excellence, Strategic and Development (IESD) fund.

This groundbreaking move, which echoes the philosophy underpinning the Coalition’s 2011 mental health strategy (No health without mental health), could reverse decades of inequality for people with mental health problems who have had their lives blighted by not being able to access the right kind of services quickly enough.

The equal prominence also helps to challenge the corrosive narrative that people with mental health problems are ‘burdensome’ and ‘untreatable’. We know that, just as for people with physical health issues, with the right kind of support they can lead ordinary, fulfilling lives – a positive outcome for them as individuals and society as a whole.

Together is concerned, however, that the ongoing uncertainty around the Bill is further impacting on the ability of the NHS and local authorities to deliver on the recommendations of the mental health strategy.

Instead of positive change on the ground, our colleagues and the people who access our services are worried about threats to existing services as funding cuts bite. There is anxiety over proposed benefit changes as well as fears about the prospects for employment or decent housing.

Only by tackling the issue across the whole of the health and social care spectrum can real outcomes for people with mental health issues be achieved, Together believes.

Liz Felton, Chief Executive says:

“Considering the lamentable lack of priority and funding given to mental health historically, the fact that the bill aims to put it on a footing with that devoted to physical health is a major step forward and a potential watershed in how mental health is managed in the future.

“However, it is only when health and social care agencies work together that meaningful and long-lasting results can be achieved for people with ongoing mental health issues. There is no point in someone receiving excellent help in hospital, for example, if they have no support in place to find somewhere to live or to access financial support when they are discharged. It makes the prospect of someone ending up in crisis and requiring support from acute services again, almost inevitable.”

For further information please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing Officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7376/07734 870065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

In the report following his inspection of Styal women’s prison in Cheshire the Chief Inspector comments: “The deaths of six women at Styal prison between 2002 and 2003 led to the commissioning of the review of vulnerable women in prison by Baroness Corston. Published in 2007, it recommended a drastic reduction in the use of women’s imprisonment. It was therefore disappointing to find too many cases of women, some of whom are clearly mentally ill, serving very short prison sentences which served little purpose except to further disrupt sometimes already chaotic lives.”

Together believes that women offenders with mental health issues who pose no threat to the public should not be in prison but should receive support in the community, to tackle their offending and address their health and social care needs.

It has long been known that the vast majority of women offenders in the country’s prisons have mental health problems. Together believes that the very experience of locking women up, often separating them from their children, can actually exacerbate their problems. Because many are on short-term sentences, there is inadequate time and resources to tackle their mental health problems and many leave prison having lost their homes, jobs and children; making the cycle of offending almost inevitable.

Through its Forensic Mental Health Practitioner Service, Together has been working with offenders for nearly 20 years. Operations and Development Manager, Linda Bryant says: “This report demonstrates again that more needs to be done to address mental health and social care problems to prevent women being at risk of offending and ending up being given custodial sentences in the first place.

“Our experience has shown us that prison is not a successful setting for tackling the often complex social and emotional needs of women offenders. Moreover, a prison sentence can result in women on release finding themselves homeless, unemployed and therefore unable to care for or be reunited with their children, many of whom will have been put into care. The impact on the family unit can be devastating.

“Diverting female offenders to the community where their mental health needs, which are often a factor in their offending can be addressed via a combined, multi-agency approach and their relationship with their children maintained, reduces re-offending rates and makes better use of resources”.

Together works with female offenders through its diversion and offender management programmes and runs a women’s court liaison and outreach project at Thames Magistrates’ Court in London.

^{1 ‘}Report on an unannounced follow-up visit inspection of HMP Styal 5-15 July 2011 by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons’ published January 2012, page 6: http://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/publications/inspectorate-reports/hmipris/styal-2011.pdf

For further information please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing Officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7300/07734 870065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

Suffolk Befriending Service, run by national mental health charity Together, has been providing support to clients with mental health issues for four years across Suffolk. It was under serious threat of closure as the current funding was due to come to an end.

Thanks to the injection of cash, the service will be able to continue to provide clients with the opportunity to engage in a number of social activities with the support of a designated ‘befriender’. The rapport helps to build confidence so that people can eventually take an active part in their local community. This is especially important in reducing the social isolation we know exists for people with mental health issues living in a rural area like Suffolk.

Says Patrick Yardy, who runs the service: “Lots of people with mental health issues live a very lonely existence. Through the befriending service they find the confidence to socialise, find hobbies, find a rapport with people who really understand them, and this really boosts their confidence and gives them a social outlet. Thanks to the Lottery we can continue this really important work in reducing the social isolation of our clients across rural Suffolk.”

The aim now is to build on the service already in place working with mental health providers across Suffolk, as well as to recruit and train more volunteers in the coming months to meet the growing demand.

For further information please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing Officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7300/07734 870065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

The exhibition is called Growing Together, after the charity’s 2011 initiative to encourage people to harness the positive power of gardening to nourish their mental well-being. Its purpose is to celebrate the work of this project and to highlight that being exposed to nature is one way in which people who are experiencing mental distress or isolation, can reconnect with themselves and their communities.

Painting and sculpture works will feature from artists associated with the following organisations: Together, Wish (a voice for women’s mental health), Clean Break, The Other Side Gallery, Skylight Crisis, The survivor’s poetry group, Feltham Young Offenders Institute (YOI), HMP Holloway, HMP Brixton, HMP / YOI ISIS ,The Manor Garden Centre and The Lismore Circus Community Woods group. Also work from New York playwright, poet and Psychoanalyst Frederick Feirstein will be on display.

Eve McDougall, curator at Together’s Our Space gallery and an artist and ex-prisoner herself said: “Gardens are a place of great solace and a powerful source of emotional escapism. Nature can help shape our thoughts and ideas and what we see can inspire us to create a response; art.

“We reached out to artists – some at liberty to breathe fresh air – some not, to give us their responses to gardens, horticulture and cultivated open spaces. Come inside and see the results.”

Shane Biddle, contributing artist and Together service-user said of his series of photographs ‘Violas’: “My artwork helps channel my anger; now when I sense those old feelings coming back, I pick up a camera or a paint brush and I feel a sense of calm.

“I usually work in acrylics and my work usually takes on darker themes. Flowers were a new thing for me, as is the medium of photography, so these pieces have really helped me grow as an artist”.

Javaugham, contributing artist from Feltham Young Offenders Institute, on his mixed media piece To walk in the park said: “My poetry and thoughts in print are transformed into texture and form; the trees come to life with my words”.

Suza Johnston, speaking on behalf of The Lismore Circus Community Woods group on their basket-woven fox sculptures said: “Following a day spent learning weaving techniques from The British Museum’s resident artist we made two foxes using plastic bags as our weaving ‘fabric’.

“Our inspiration was taken from modern aboriginal artworks that use traditional weaving techniques to fashion models of wild dogs, who played a large role in aboriginal communities”.

The exhibition runs from this Friday 30 September – 8 December and is open Monday – Friday, 9.30am – 5pm at the Together Our Space Gallery: 12 Old Street, London, EC1V 9BE. Admission is free. Nearest tube is Barbican.

For further information or to arrange interviews please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing Officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7300/07734 870065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

Growing Together is an initiative run by national mental health charity Together for Mental Wellbeing, designed to nurture peace of mind and reduce mental distress through the health and social benefits of horticulture.

Based in Watford, Greenhill Lodge provides 24-hour supported housing to 11 adult men and women with mental health issues who are trying to move on with their lives and regain their independence.

The residents have invited Christine to a garden party they are holding to celebrate all the hard work and creativity they have put in together to create an outdoor space where they can either socialise or spend peaceful time alone in.

Christine who will be mucking in on the day by helping to plant new specimens as well as offering growing tips, said: “I am proud to be patron of the Growing Together initiative. Sometimes we all feel like we don’t want to get up in the morning but these feelings are usually transient. When you’re living with enduring mental health issues, such feelings can be constant.

I believe gardening is one of the best therapies for improving mental wellbeing. I hope the individuals living at Together’s project, here in my home county of Hertfordshire have found that transforming their garden has inspired creativity and provided a positive way of reducing stress”.

Simon, a resident with a long history of mental health problems said, when talking about Growing Together: “I’ve really surprised myself and taken real pleasure in working on the project; I’ve found the exercise and fresh air really helpful, although I do ache from time to time! I spend much more time in the garden now – doing rather than just sitting – and I have my own area to develop and maintain, which keeps me busy”.

Jo Forrest, Operations and Development Manager for Hertfordshire said: “I’m really proud of the achievements made by everyone working and living here at Greenhill Lodge. This year’s Growing Together initiative has motivated us all; we recognised we could dramatically improve the outdoor area at the house and made an adventurous plan to renovate it.”

For further information please contact Robyn Clark, PR & Marketing Officer at Together, Tel: 0207 780 7300/07734 870065 or Email: robyn-clark@together-uk.org

TV gardening guru Christine Walkden was on hand in Yorkshire today to launch Together’s bid to improve the nation’s wellbeing through horticulture, writes Amanda Williamson.

Christine has agreed to be the patron of Growing Together, a ten-month initiative designed to bring communities together through the feel-good power of gardening and the great outdoors.

Together hope to spread the word that there is manure to life than bills and rising prices. Ideas so far include seed-swapping, recipe books for how to cook home-grown produce, organising countryside walks and asking people to make ‘green’ pledges, such as growing a window box to improve their environment, or recycling plant pots.

Through its work with people with mental health issues, Together has seen the restorative power of horticulture in instilling hope, giving people a sense of control and purpose and reducing social isolation. This, coupled with the obvious physical benefits of exercise and fresh air, is what the charity believes everyone could be tapping into to get through these tough times.

Christine, who has regularly presented on BBC’s Gardener’s World and the One Show, travelled first to a derelict wasteland attached to Oakwood Lane Allotments in Leeds where she began a ‘chain of support’ by cutting through the first section of brambles which have invaded the site. Together has agreed to help transform it back into a series of plots for people with mental and physical difficulties, including veterans.

Said Together’s Dave Leigh, a former member of the armed forces who is currently developing the charity’s work with veterans: “Returning service personnel need to keep active, reconnect with the outdoors to remind them it is a safe and beautiful place and maintain the order and discipline that caring for a garden brings. We really want this place to be an oasis away from the pressures of coping with returning to a ‘normal’ life.”

From there Christine travelled to Wakefield to see the flourishing allotment tended by a group of carers who are supporting relatives with mental health issues. The group managed to get the site ready for the launch despite a serious recent setback when thieves stole all their equipment!

The group spoke about how the relaxation of gardening and the bond of friendship formed amongst the amateur gardeners have proved a lifeline from the strain of full-time caring.

Irene Hughes has been coming to the allotment with her son Wayne. She explains: “Before I came to the garden I felt alone and now I don’t, I feel part of something. My son was very quiet, shy and withdrawn when we first came after being unwell and now he loves gardening and from once not leaving my side he will leave me to get on with what he’s working on and he talks to everyone. With encouragement from the group he has been to a drop-in and done woodworking to help with what he does on the garden too.”

Said Em Brown, from Together, who is leading the initiative: “As the nation digs in to survive economic hardship and the anxiety that comes with that, we believe there has never been a better time to garden, no matter how big or small. The response so far has been amazing and we are already seeing the way it is transforming some of our service user’s lives. It’s something everyone could benefit from.”

After her day Christine said she was inspired by to see what people have achieved – often with little means: “I believe the activities being planned for Growing Together will bring people together who will all benefit from the sense of community and being valued whatever their position in life.”

For further information about this story, please call Amanda Williamson, Communications Manager, Together, on 0207 730 7392/ 0788 9318 870.