Retirement village honours Mental Health Awareness Week

Residents and staff from a retirement village in Birmingham honoured Wear it Green Day this week to raise awareness for mental health.

Wear it Green Day which is part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2023 took place on Thursday 18 May.

Residents at Longbridge Retirement Village were offered compliments and cookies. Everyone who came to the specially created stall received a kind comment and a biscuit with some saying it was the first compliment they had had in years.

Staff created a green quiz and raffled off a hamper with green prizes including food, drink, and beauty items. Quotes and testimonials from residents were on display boards discussing the benefits of wellbeing services provided at the ExtraCare village.

150 people attended the morning event with residents, families, and visitors taking the opportunity to have a good chat about mental health and what it meant to them. They also read quotes from the book “The boy, the mole, the fox and the horse”.

Longbridge Village’s generous Knit & Natter group donated £50 towards the amount raised. With a total nearing £200 all proceeds will go towards the village’s EOP (Enhanced Opportunities Programme) room and to buying more tablets so residents can run a puzzle group which will help with visual impairment, mental health and dexterity.

Kirsty Biddle, Longbridge Village’s Dementia and Mental Wellbeing Enabler commented: “I felt it was important to celebrate Wear it Green Day as we continue to recognise looking after our mental health. We are working with an age group within our villages where mental health issues may have previously been missed and have remained undiagnosed. Events like this inspire conversation, which we know is the first step in gaining help, and a great way to keep raising awareness.”

Mental health issues can sadly be common in older generations. A Longbridge resident added: