In 2019, three deaf men were involved in the Two Deaf Foot fundraising challenge. Two of them walked 1,200 miles from John O’Groats to Land’s End raising £60,000! £30,000 was donated to SignHealth.
A big thank you to the all those involved in this amazing fundraiser! And to everyone who donated towards the Two Deaf Foot fund. Your support will have a huge impact on deaf children and young people’s mental health for years to come. For this we are incredibly grateful. Thank you so much!
Deaf children and young people’s mental health
We know that 1 in 5 children are experiencing mental health problems in the UK. With nearly 80% of deaf children and young people in mainstream settings and 90% born into families with no prior experience of deafness facing funding barriers to receiving BSL lessons, deaf children are even more vulnerable to experiencing poor mental health. (Sources: Young Minds, NDCS, BDA and Deaf CAMHS)
Early mental health interventions for children and young people makes a big impact. It can help to build up social and emotional skills which are essential for learning and life, support future good mental health, and discourage risky behaviours such as smoking and substance abuse. (Source: Early Intervention Foundation)
Funded projects
We are expanding our early intervention 1:1 support to include emotional health and wellbeing support provided by our new Children and Young People team.
The Two Deaf Foot fund will cover the costs to upskill our Children and Young People team, who will receive Emotional Literacy Support Assistants (ELSA) and Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) trainings. We want to reduce the demand for Deaf CAMHS and mental health support in early adulthood by having qualified staff in our team providing support for deaf children and young people earlier.
In partnership with Royal Association of Deaf People (RAD), this fund will cover the cost for five deaf young adults in the South West region to attend RAD’s Youth Mental Health First Aid course.
In addition, we will be working with Deaf Action to cover the costs for two deaf young adults in Scotland to undertake the Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) Instructor training. This course enables delegates to deliver YMHFA training. Once completed, these two young adults will be able to offer reduced cost training courses to peers and professionals who work with deaf young people across Scotland.
SignHealth
“Currently there is a mental health crisis for young people and deaf young people have additional barriers to receiving the support they need.
Early mental health intervention can make a huge difference and give deaf young people tools to support resilience and wellbeing. We really appreciate the Two Deaf Foot fund to support and expand our work, from John O’Groats to Lands End. We are also looking forwards to strengthening our partnerships with the Royal Association of Deaf People, Deaf Action and local clubs.”
Royal Association of Deaf People (RAD)
“RAD is thrilled to partner with SignHealth on this vital project. As an accredited training provider with Mental Health First Aid England, we offer a comprehensive range of courses, from awareness sessions to in-depth two-day programs, covering both Adult and Youth Mental Health First Aid, as well as Suicide Prevention.
We’re especially proud that our trainer, Molly, is the only Associate Tutor delivering this crucial Suicide Prevention training in British Sign Language (BSL), made possible through funding from SignLive.
We look forward to continuing this important collaboration to make a meaningful impact on mental health within the Deaf community.”
Deaf Action
“We are excited to collaborate with SignHealth to provide deaf young people the opportunity to train as Mental Health First Aiders.
It’s incredibly important for deaf youth to have peers within their own community who can provide mental health support when needed. As well as providing mental health support within the deaf community, this also offers young deaf people the opportunity to learn new skills that can shape their future. We’re looking forward to getting started!”
“This is an important step towards ensuring that deaf young people in Scotland have access to mental health support that is accessible in their preferred language, and delivered with empathy.”
If you or someone you know are interested in our support or Youth Mental Health First Aid training, please contact us at cyp@signhealth.org.uk.
Can you help?
Show deaf young people that we will not settle for a world with barriers to health and wellbeing.
Real stories from deaf young people
