Demand for local counselling service continues to rise – fundraisers needed to help expand support for young people facing mental health issues
Youth Talk, the St Albans based charity providing free, confidential counselling to 13-25 year olds, is receiving unprecedented levels of enquiries from young people suffering from mental health issues. The charity is looking to recruit a new army of fundraisers and supporters in order to expand its support for local, young people. Youth Talk will be highlighting its work during Mental Health Awareness Week (10-16 May).
75% of young people in the UK who are experiencing mental health problems aren’t receiving the assistance they need, something that Youth Talk is committed to helping address in St Albans
and its surrounding areas.
David Barker, Youth Talk’s CEO comments: “The Covid-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the mental well-being of young people and we are now facing a silent pandemic of mental health problems. Youth Talk provides a safe space to talk in total confidence. Our fully qualified counsellors are experts in supporting young people – whatever worries or challenges they may be facing. Everyone feels sad, angry, frustrated and scared sometimes. When these feelings are overwhelming or happening all the time, we encourage young people to talk about them. Talking about things confidentially can help young people to work out what is really worrying or upsetting them and explore what they could do to try to make things better.
But we rely on the generosity of our local community to keep Youth Talk running and as demand increases we need to grow our service so that we can be there for the growing numbers of young people who need our help”.
Despite lockdown, Youth Talk has been offering over 80 sessions a week (up from 60 before the pandemic). Over the coming months the charity envisages, for the first time in its 23 year history, it will provide 100 sessions a week – always held in private, either in person under Covid friendly conditions at the charity’s base in St Albans or via Zoom in a safe and secure environment.
It’s easy for a young person to contact Youth Talk to make use of this confidential service which runs Monday – Friday. They can either fill in a self-referral form on the charity’s website www.youthtalk.org.uk or phone (01727 868684) or make contact via email info@youthtalk.org.uk
Since 1997, over 3500 young people have trusted Youth Talk to provide this free, confidential and expert support from a dedicated team of experienced professionals, but this help comes at a cost. David Barker added: “It costs us over £50 to provide one young person with one vital counselling session – and this does not take into account all the other costs associated with running a charity like Youth Talk. On average each young person will have around 12 sessions with us but we will see people for up to a year if need be. It makes effective fundraising absolutely critical and we need more people across our community to get involved and support us. A commitment by companies and individuals, donating over a period of time, is especially helpful allowing us to plan our support with confidence. Harpenden Building Society, for instance, has supported Youth Talk for the last 3 years and is planning to continue this relationship with us. We’re looking for additional, committed supporters like this.”
Having had to cancel many traditional fundraising events over the last year and with increased demand for support created during the pandemic, Youth Talk will be delighted to hear from people interested in getting involved with the work of the charity.
During Mental Health Awareness Week (May 10-16) Youth Talk will be running a social media campaign to help raise much needed additional funding. The charity will be sharing messages from supporters about why they donate to Youth Talk and encourage others to join them. Donors, future volunteers or those needing support, can also gain further information by visiting youthtalk.org.uk
Youth Talk support sessions are always held in private, either in person under Covid friendly conditions at the charity’s base in St Albans or via Zoom in a safe and secure environment.