Mental health charities, Carrick Mind based in Penryn and Restormel Mind in Bodmin, have been awarded funding by Sport England and the National Lottery.

The charities help people try new sports and activities to help improve their physical and mental health.

The Get Set to Go programme supports people who are experiencing mental health problems – such as depression and anxiety – to improve their mental wellbeing, build their confidence to join sports clubs, go to the gym or take up a new sport.

The programme works closely with a range of community partners to deliver community sessions and create a more inclusive and welcoming environment across local sport and leisure facilities.

People with mental health problems who have taken part in an earlier pilot phase of the Get Set to Go programme say that it not only increased their activity levels over a 12-month period, but also helped them feel more resilient and better able to cope with challenging life events.

The hope is that people in Cornwall will benefit from this new phase of Get Set to Go.

The Get Set to Go programme launched in 2015 and in the past three years, more than 3,500 people with mental health problems have benefited and tried out new activities in a relaxed and friendly environment.

An independent research team from Loughborough University conducted a two-year study which showed that 78 per cent of people rated it as very good or excellent after just six months.

In this new phase of the programme, Mind aims to support over 120,000 people with mental health problems across the country to become more active through its work in communities and partners in the sport sector.

Paul Farmer, Chief Executive of Mind said: “We know that physical activity can play a vital role in the lives of people with mental health problems, reducing the risk of depression by up to 30 per cent. Unfortunately, we also know that many people who do want to participate in sport are being held back by their mental health, whether that’s feelings of low self confidence, exhaustion or fear of crowded spaces.

"The findings of the first phase of the Get Set to Go programme shows us that it works as a model, improving participants’ resilience and building their support networks. We are therefore delighted to have received funding from Sport England and the National Lottery to build on this and support even more people with mental health problems to become more physically active.”

Mike Diaper, Sport England’s Executive Director Community Sport, said: “We are delighted to partner with Mind and invest National Lottery funding to enable Minds in communities across the country to bring the benefits of sport and activity to people with mental health problems. We urge everyone working in the sport and physical activity sector to learn from Get Set to Go and make their own services more accessible, supportive and welcoming to all.”

Jamie Tresidder, Get Set to Go Project Officer, Cornwall Sports Partnership said: “Get Set to Go is providing people in Cornwall, who are suffering with their mental health, the perfect opportunity to get active for free, in a comfortable and relaxed environment amongst a group of like-minded peers. The sessions are delivered by Cornish Pirates Community Team in West Penwith and local CIC’s SPARC & Sport for Energy. The coaches from these organisations do an outstanding job in creating the right atmosphere, are sensitive to people’s needs and their pre-existing relationship with physical activity, to ensure the participants get the maximum benefit from the activities they take part in.”

Sam Teasdale Community Engagement Manager from Cornish Pirates said: “The sessions so far have been great fun with excellent attendance. We offer a real variety of sports such as netball, rugby, dodgeball, badminton, rounders, indoor hockey and kwik cricket. We also enjoyed a team trip for the Jersey Reds fixture on the 10th of March.

Jo Boulton from Carrick Mind said: “We also train Peer Volunteers, who understand how mental health problems can be a barrier to getting more active, to support participants to attend Get Set to Go sessions and try out different activities in their community. We are currently offering Get Set to Go in Penzance, Redruth, Falmouth, St Austell and Bodmin and will be running a number of taster sessions over the coming months followed by 12-week programmes.”

If you are interested in taking part, then more details can be found at www.carrickmind.org.uk or by contacting active@carrickmind.org.uk.