Wellbeing Care Packages

Initiative purpose:

This initiative is focussed on those who are going through difficult times and would benefit from knowing there are others who care about them.

Supported goals:

Work with local organisations and groups to improve attitudes towards mental health and to implement early intervention programs

Improve access to information and resources to support mental fitness

Be a visible, proactive, and positive presence in our communities

What are we doing:

We work with partner organisations who identify young people to us, going through great challenges with their wellbeing. For them we prepare a Wellbeing Pack, that is delivered to them by our partner organisation (Christians Against Poverty, EMA Training and Social Prescribers for Erewash and Amber Valley).

How did this program start and what are the benefits?

We asked ourselves: What can we do to help these young people (and their families) build resilience and encourage and motivate them to pursue a more positive path to overcome the wellbeing difficulties they face?

Together with our early partner organisations we created a ‘wellbeing care package’ for three young people facing such challenges. Each package was made up of relevant reading materials (books), chocolates, pens, leaflets and other personalised items. Our intention was to:

Demonstrate to the young person that others cared about them
Encourage self-care for the young person
Signpost the young person to materials and groups that would support, advise and encourage them on a more positive path for their mental fitness and wellbeing.

Encouraging responses to our three test scenarios, and subsequent successful application for funds from grants secured from two sources (Derbyshire County Council Small Grants Scheme and the Vernon Robert Baumer Foundation), enabled us to conduct a pilot program in 4Q23 and 2024 with our partner organisations (who identify and select young people that could benefit from a ‘wellbeing care package”). The pilot was extremely successful and we have now started to roll out a larger program in our local community in 2024/25.

As always the enduring ability to provide these packages to those in need will depend on continuous funding. We will seek to maintain that funding as our Pilot program and Roll Out more widely demonstrated so much benefit from this small act of kindness – to show them that they are seen, they are not alone, that someone cares deeply about them, and there are ways to feel hopeful and move forward positively.

More about our Wellbeing Care Packages

Our pilot project gave us some great insights into how this program could work.

For example working with EMA Training during the Pilot program, referrals are made by apprentice mentors and staff who provide anonymous information about each young person. They also try to select one item that is personal to each individual. This might be a voucher for a particular shop, something relating to a hobby, or simply something the young person might enjoy. The Care Packs consist of a range of items including ‘smellies’, a candle, something delicious to eat, a book, and mindfulness colouring, along with a postcard and a trinket designed by one of our volunteers, Emma Jane Bourne (Sweet Pea Designs). 100% of recipients agreed that the items in the Care Pack were helpful and one recipient said “I felt as though I was being thought about outside of just talking to someone and the care package actually helped me to find a new way to help myself relax”.