The Wellbeing Award Longlist NSVAs 2022
Recognising those individuals, societies or projects that have championed student wellbeing. Student volunteering and societies provide a crucial space for students to feel comfortable, do what they love and make friends. We know how important this is for student wellbeing.
The Wellbeing Project
The Wellbeing Project is a student led initiative where volunteers create and deliver interactive sessions for young people in secondary schools across Sheffield. Volunteers help young people learn healthy coping strategies, and provide practical guidance and support signposting to local services.
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
Focussing on higher priority schools, volunteers worked with 384 young people this year. Schools gave 100% positive feedback on content, pace of the lessons, and students’ teaching skills.
The Mental Health & Wellbeing Lead at one school said ‘The session was fantastic. They felt equipped not only to look after their own wellbeing but also were inspired to share this with others’.
The volunteers also benefited ‘ The project had not only an impact on the pupils but for us as volunteers too, it provided us with a support network which definitely contributed to my wellbeing!’
What is special about this nominee?
A pilot project this year, the Wellbeing Project was set up in response to students’ concerns about the mental health crisis in young people. The team excelled in offering a yp focussed, accessible and engaging experience for all, tailoring activities to meet the needs of each year group in consultation with local teachers.
As ‘near peers’, the volunteers demonstrated a great understanding in how to connect and empathise , structuring the sessions to give the yps ownership of the lesson and opportunities to build on their strengths, apply existing knowledge and take positive action.
IMD22
IMD22 was a social media project aiming to raise awareness for male mental health within our student community in Sunderland. It featured several interviews, documentaries and entertainment shows of which all had the same message: Get talking!
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
With a reach of over 6000 on twitter, 1000 on facebook and 200 on instagram, this social media campaign has been one of our most successful, well-received projects all year! We hope it reached people who may not have liked or commented, but needed to hear/read the stories and find some strength within it. With COVID restrictions and uncertainties still looming, we decided we wanted to celebrate International Men’s Day this year but through a social media project that could reach our online community and provide some positive messages that often get lost online.
What is special about this nominee?
As the stations Head of Speech, it was important for me to showcase crafted documentaries that tell such personal stories in the most eloquent of ways- Down On The Farm and The Brain Garden both navigate the listener through 2 very different experiences with mental health and suicide, one within the rural farming community and the other within the LGBTQ+ community. IMD needs focus- men need to take comfort and know what resources there are for their mental health.
Headucate
Headucate is a student led society who’s primary aim is to raise awareness of mental health and tackle the associated stigma. Headucate provides members with training so they can deliver educational Mental Health awareness workshops at schools in the local area.
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
Headucate UEA social media campaigns have reached almost 20,000 people internationally & 1000s of listens to our 5 appearances on BBC Radio Norfolk. Headucate committee members have developed & now deliver eating disorder teaching to Year 4 medical students as part of the Psychiatry curriculum at the UEA Medical School. Headucate has received national recognition for their work winning multiple awards. Headucate has continued to collaborate with other like-minded charities, organisations, student societies at UEA, & nationwide, to promote mental health & run events for students.
What is special about this nominee?
Headucate is innovative in its approach to educating others about mental health, quickly adjusting their workshops to run online to continue to engage with local schools. Headucate committee have published in peer-reviewed journals and been invited to present at psychiatric conferences and is establishing a unique research group to allow members to get involved with research and impact. Headucate UEA has also been integral in the founding of Headucate UK a registered charity with over 20 student societies nationally involved, with roughly 50 representatives from socs nationwide.
Olivia Gaynard
Olivia Gaynard, the project leader for Durham Minds (the student-led volunteering project). Olivia has been detrimental to the success of the project this year, with her passion for the initiative showing through her constant idea generation and project development.
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
Durham Minds initially started as inclusive support to individuals with mental
health issues through practical, fun activities including art therapy sessions supported by student volunteers working alongside community partner organisations. Olivia has been working hard throughout the year to reach out to local health centres to promote the work of Durham Minds and start to introduce more student mental health support, including through the original voluntary work but also providing specific sessions for students to come along too for their mental wellbeing.
What is special about this nominee?
Olivia has adapted the project and made it more accessible for all students, not just those willing to volunteer their time to support others, but for those who may need a little bit more support too. This adaptation supports the work of external community organisations and health care centres, with local GP's now signposting students to the project as a wellbeing session, overall alleviating the pressure on University services and external services and contributing to breaking the stigma around mental health issues.
Shaun Lillie
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
Shaun is PGR Disability Rep and has run numerous events to bring together students, both with and without disabilities. He has run a movie night, welcome week stall, free lunch, and yoga sessions. He started the Disabled Students Network which has 22 members. He ensures his events are a safe space to meet new people, bring together a community and host stress-busting activities. He signposts students to Disability and Advice services whenever they need support and has advised students with learning difficulties who were interested in postgrad study about the support they can get at PhD level.
What is special about this nominee?
Shaun volunteers as a rep and several society positions alongside his PhD where he researches improving the digital learning environment for autistic students. He has only been in the role for 4 months, incredible considering the breadth of work he undertakes. He recently won NSU’s Inclusion in Education Rep Award and Impact on Student Welfare Annual Award, with a nomination noting how he provided support ‘for any student who just needed a bit of help.’ He frequently meets with NSU staff to brainstorm ideas for wellbeing events, ensuring students of all levels and abilities are included.
Procraftination Society
UUSU Procraftination Society - is the arts and crafts society at Ulster University, Magee Campus. The society hosts weekly themed craft events, where students can pop in, grab some art materials, a hot drink, biscuits and destress. The society is built around mindfulness, through the medium of art.
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
Our local Mental health statistics are tragic. We’re committed to providing a safe, fun and positive community for our students, to craft, meet people and destress – or have a chat to a listening ear. We have a “Mind Your Mate” trained committee member. And supported our local wellbeing groups -raising £130 for Foyle Prevention team, a group who patrol our local bridges to keep those who may be feeling suicidal, safe. And £167 for AgeNI, who work to combat loneliness in older people, also writing 445 cards for their clients, so they all had at least one card to open over the festive holidays.
What is special about this nominee?
Art has been proven to have positive mental health impact. We promote our mindful events in a way that is fun and engaging, with themes and competitions – avoiding preaching, as we know there is still a stigma and reluctance to attend events labelled as such. Art materials only has a benefit if someone is using them! Our members have reported that they find our events a much needed, relaxing part of their week, which we see as a massive success. We are dependable, having ran weekly the full academic year, for the 3rd year running, despite the challenges of running online last year.
University of York Crafts Society
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
At Crafts Society, we aim to bring inclusive and accessible crafts to campus. We meet weekly and encourage students to express themselves creatively and refine their skills. So far we have explored wire-working, felting, and tote bag painting. We have run a number of collaborations such as jewellery-making with Swift Soc, which garnered 60 participants. Collaborations have been vital in spreading the word of our new society, and for introducing people to crafting who hadn't previously considered it. We welcome feedback from our community, regularly taking on event ideas to make them a reality.
What is special about this nominee?
It's important to curate an environment that is sensitive to members’ sensory needs, so we designed a two room system. One room is more lively with music and chatter. The other is a quiet room with no/soothing music and independent work. This is popular with our introverted and neurodivergent members. To make our events financially accessible, we subsidise membership/admission fees and offer free taster events. The committee is diverse, featuring independent and international students. As a women-run organisation we take pride in giving underrepresented backgrounds leadership opportunities.
Hear to Listen volunteers
The Hear to Listen volunteers offer friendly, non-judgemental, confidential, 1-1 wellbeing support, in person and online, and a safe ‘Caim’ space where students can find someone to talk to, offload their worries, or be signposted to additional support if needed.
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
While this project was set up by staff, I am nominating the fantastic team of volunteers who work tirelessly to support their fellow students.
In Hear to Listen’s first year, 104 students have been supported by the 150 diverse volunteers. As well as creating a positive impact on the wider student body, Hear to Listen has also been a hugely beneficial experience for the volunteer listeners. (Please see emailed impact report for some quotes from them).
What is special about this nominee?
The Listeners Team also took part in a piece of academic research, organised by Prof Paul Desan of Yale University. This included completing Science of Happiness training, which inspired the listeners to start delivering weekly ‘happy hour’ sessions where arts and crafts and exercise were offered to students to help them unwind and take a break from their studies.
Some other highlights of the year include STV publishing a news piece about Hear to Listen at Christmas, and 11 MP’s signing an Early Day Motion in Westminster commending the project and the Listeners Team.
Wellbeing Ambassadors Regular Project
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
529 hours logged between 51 volunteers in 2021/22. They held a Wellbeing Day on 12th Nov and celebrated Uni Mental Health Day on 3rd March with various events, including free yoga/meditation, therapeutic "plate smashing", arts & crafts and visits from therapy dogs. They also took part in every day of SVW, including Coffee and Chat/wellness mornings, a stall for making self-affirmation cards, and giving out cards and roses. They held 3 events for SHAG Week, including a sexual harassment awareness stall, a Guess the STI Symptoms game, and a Lets Talk About Sex coffee morning.
What is special about this nominee?
The WAs are almost entirely directed by their student committee, with minimal oversight from staff only where we're required. Their committee of four are particularly talented individuals, all of whom were either shortlisted or won awards at our Activities Awards (2 shortlisted and 2 wins). They are signposters who know every internal and external service to refer students in need to. The project leader especially has innovated the project by creating a website run by trained volunteers, where students can anonymously submit worries or concerns and a volunteer will respond to them.
A Cappella Society
How has the person, event, group or initiative impactful?
For welfare, we continued our 'aca-parenting' scheme that pairs new students with existing members for support purposes. We continued weekly wellbeing posts and arranged events in line with UoN's wellbeing week, including coffee mornings, boxing, and a puppy playtime! We are one of the first societies at UoN to introduce an EDI officer, and we created an accessibility form for members to express their needs and have introduced gender neutral language. We have hosted 2 ethnic food socials to celebrate member diversity, and created a demographics survey to improve support and representation.
What is special about this nominee?
We have gone all out this year in terms of welfare and support, continuing previous events that went well, and introducing new ones, exclusive to our society members! We make sure all members are represented through both our demographics survey and our auditions handbook, with the help of our EDI officer and wellbeing coordinator. Our ethnic foodie socials were organised by our members, celebrating culture and diversity within our society. A Cappella should win this award for our efforts in representation and inclusivity, and we recently won the UoNSU Welfare and Inclusivity award.