by Adam Evans & Editor
DROP-IN sessions encouraging people to share conversations and support about mental health, begin at Newport County’s Rodney Parade this week.
The club is working in partnership with the Caerphilly-based charity My Discombobulated Brain to provide a space for people to meet twice a month, starting on Thursday, (23).
County were the first League Two club and the fourth in the whole of the English Football League to sign up to the Mental Health Charter for Sports and Recreation in November 2019.
According to leading support charity Samaritans, two in five men in Wales, England and Scotland aged 20-59 don’t seek support when they need to. In the United Kingdom, men are three times as likely to die by suicide than women.
Newport County Trust Director Colin Faulkner, emphasised the importance of the initiative.
“For us it is important that we support the community who support us, by providing services, whether it be counselling or a bit of time out just to have a chat,” he said.
“There are people such as full time carers who don’t have the chance to get out so it provides that opportunity.
“It is primarily there to just get people talking about their mental health because in football there is a stigma that it isn’t spoken about.
“It is very difficult for players to talk about it and get rid of the whole phrase of ‘man up’. We need to change that.
“It’s just about getting the message about mental health out there.”
💛 | On #BlueMonday (#AmberMonday 🙌) #NCAFC would like to remind everyone connected with the Club that support and initiatives are in place to help you.
Watch our #WMHD2019 video below & read our article 👇
💛 https://t.co/vNXhdWqeSB#OneClubOneCounty @DiscombobBrain pic.twitter.com/btpeyhRs67
— Newport County AFC (@NewportCounty) January 20, 2020
My Discombobulated Brain, a Welsh mental health charity, aim to tackle the stigma of mental health and offer support as well as education for those affected.
On the charity’s website, founder Laura Dernie spoke about the collaboration with the League Two club.
“We are very proud of all the work that we do with Newport County, however being able to use Bar Amber and give the fans a ‘safe space’ to talk about how they are feeling is something that we are very proud to do.”
Drop-in sessions will run every first Wednesday (12:00-14:00) and third Thursday (16:30-18:30) of the month at Newport County’s Bar Amber at Rodney Parade.
