“One participant had been struggling with depression. He had had a history of self-harm and was unable to take his children swimming because of the scars. We supported him to get tattoos to disguise them. It was a small thing but really gave him a boost.” The initiative’s Facebook group has some 13,000 members, a closed chatroom which has attracted some 800 people, as well as oneto-one messaging for those requiring direct support.
A spin out group dedicated for women, FemTalk, has also been running since October 2019 with mentoring support from Jason. Further projects are in the pipeline to support men affected by domestic violence in partnership with the Elm Foundation, as well as Shaun w a group for men with eating disorders working tumble with First Steps.
"We try to get back to people as soon as possible. We aren’t trained counsellors, so we signpost anyone that we think needs professional help to one of around a hundred partner organisations, which includes the Borderline Personality Support Group, Samaritans and with Women’s Florence, 10 years xxxxx Aid." During the course of the year the project has scooped a number of awards, namely Derbyshire Times Business Excellence 'Community Contribution' Award; Chesterfield and NE Derbyshire Volunteer Centre’s 'Most Innovative Project' Award; BBC & South Yorkshire Community Foundation 'Outstanding Champion' Award and Peak FM’s 'Community Hero' Award. With the wind in their sails Jason and Frazer have been busy exploring ways to extend their reach to particular groups of vulnerable people, by forging new partnerships. “Derbyshire County Council and Derbyshire Voluntary Action have provided funding to help get us off the ground and we’re now diversifying our offer by working with others. So far, we’ve established Men -Talk groups with Chesterfield FC’s 16-18 Football Academy, Ashgate Hospice, Chesterfield College and the inpatient mental health unit, 5 Hartington Unit, at Chesterfield Royal Hospital.”
Jason Cotton, co-founder of Men-Tallk
Jason shares what he’s learnt in the process of setting up the project: My background as a DJ and promoter has come in handy. Social media is great, but eye-catching flyers can attract people who might not be actively seeking support online When we launched our public group in May 2019 the local media went a bit ballistic. Make sure you’re happy to be in the limelight and squeeze the pips out of the attention! Engage with council departments and other charities that have particular expertise. You are stronger together.
If you’re interested in working with Men-Talk please contact Jason via mentalkmeeting@gmail.com or join the Men -Talk community on Facebook
