NCP supports Chasing the Stigma

Charity works to change attitudes to mental health and wellbeing

NCP has partnered with national mental health charity Chasing the Stigma to help raise awareness of the importance of mental health with its workforce and also the 28 million customers who use the car parks across the UK each year.

During lockdown, NCP engaged with its employees to understand the mood and wellbeing of its workforce, both those who were furloughed and those working remotely.

From the feedback it became clear that mental health was a priority for colleagues. This saw the organisation seek to support staff by running a variety of mental health and wellbeing programmes to help them recognise, understand and look after their own mental health, and that of their teams, in the same way as they would their physical health.

Given the demanding nature of the past 12 months, NCP decided to partner with Chasing the Stigma, a charity that aims to normalise mental health.
Ania Lesniak, chief people officer at NCP, said: “After the year we have had, ensuring the wellbeing of our workforce has never been more important. Partnering with Chasing the Stigma was the next step for us as it aligned with our internal priorities, particularly as the charity has the Hub of Hope app, that is free and would benefit anyone who needed mental health support.

“We also believe that by partnering with Chasing the Stigma we can provide a great deal of positive influence to all of our customers and signpost them to help if and when they need it. Just by displaying posters within all of our car parks and working with the charity will mean we hopefully reach as many people as possible during what continues to be a challenging time for many.”

Chasing the Stigma was set up by Liverpool comedian Jake Mills following his own suicide attempt in October 2013. Mills realised when talking through his own personal experience that many people did not know where to turn with their own mental health issues, so he and his team created the Hub of Hope – an app to bring together all of the mental health support available to someone in any given area.

Mills said: “Right now it is vital for all of us to focus on mental health and we are really pleased to be partnering with NCP to help us raise the profile of the Hub of Hope, our free app which makes finding local help easier, and also raise money so we can continue our essential work removing the stigma around mental health and making support more accessible.

“If everyone is aware of the app, downloads it and let friends, colleagues and family members know about it, we can show that there is always hope, particularly as people can find help before crisis point and hopefully reduce the number of deaths by suicide across the UK.”

The Hub of Hope app brings together NHS, Samaritans, Mind and over 2,500 registered national and local voluntary, grassroots, private and third sector mental health support groups and services.

The app has directed more than 200,000 people to life-changing and even life-saving help. The site has proved particularly popular amongst men aged 25-54, who are often cited as being most likely to die by suicide.

A ‘Need Help Now?’ button that connects users directly to Samaritans or Crisis Text Line’s messaging service.

The Hub of Hope is also used by emergency services and NHS Trusts across the UK and has been commended by the UK’s leading mental health charities including Mind, Samaritans and Anxiety UK.

The Hub of Hope can be accessed through the app, which can be downloaded from the App Store or Play Store (Android), or via the Chasing the Stigma website:
www.hubofhope.co.uk