This year’s
looks at the impact of loneliness on individuals and society as a whole with the aim of getting us to reconnect and boost our mental health in the process.
With 1 in 5 of us feeling lonely at work and the pressures of Covid-19, it’s important to take steps to main our mental health.
Access to mental health services is limited and care-experienced young people often fall short of receiving the support they desperately need. In 2020, Drive Forward’s Care Experienced Policy Forum launched a campaign to boost access to bespoke mental health services for all young people in and out of care. Farhia, who brought the project to life says:
Drive Forward has a
that pairs industry professionals with care-experienced young people to help give them the edge when it comes to the world of work! We are proud that a staggering 89% of our young people who engage with mentoring successfully sustain their employment.
Patrice and James:
Our mentoring relationship began in February 2020, and we agreed to meet in person each week to get to know each other and begin to map out how the mentoring process would be of most use. Seven weeks later the UK entered its first lockdown.
My grandfather died at the end of 2020, and I felt the pain of that loss greatly. I still feel that loss, and I also feel that the lockdowns have robbed me of a period of my life when I could have been doing so much.
Patrice and James:
Each time restrictions were imposed we agreed to continue with weekly conversations, on WhatsApp. Each time restrictions were lifted, we reverted to meeting in person.
