Diocesan Initiatives
Mental Health Promotion Initiative
A second round of seed funding will be launched on Monday, 8th April 2024 with the closing date of Friday, 14th June. The aim of this grant is to help projects promote and support positive mental health in unique and exciting ways. There will be two bands of funding available in this phase, and an application form must be completed and returned by 14th June. Importantly, each application must sign to say that at least one member of the application team has attended the new online Mental Health Awareness training programme. This is a pre-condition to receiving funding. It is also expected that projects will fall within the four core themes of the project: Connections, Mental Health and Faith, Stigma Reduction and Clergy Supports.
Mental health is an issue that affects people in every part of the community. Through this initiative the Church of Ireland is seeking to make its contribution to a community-wide commitment to promoting positive mental health.
Note: Dioceses and Parishes were invited to submit applications for seed funding for local mental health promotion initiatives in 2022. 74 applications received funding all across the Island.
The four themes are:
Stigma: there is a significant level of stigma in relation to mental health issues.
Connections: Connections play and important role in positive mental health.
Supporting clergy to support others: Clergy may benefit from additional training to support parishioners experiencing mental health issues and can feel unsupported in relation to their own mental health.
Faith as a support for mental health: Faith and prayer are important to the mental health of members of the Church.
“There could perhaps never have been a more appropriate time for a project such as MindMatters to emerge. As communities, families and individuals the Covid 19 pandemic has not only raised our awareness of the challenges around maintaining a healthy sense of wellbeing but it has also increased our appetite for robust, rigorous research to explore and understand these challenges”
Dr Jill Hendron, Lecturer and Researcher in Counselling
“I am really encouraged by the understanding and recognition of the pivotal role the Church plays in mental health promotion…I am particularly heartened that the project team understand the importance of the project being needs led and I look forward to the results of the baseline assessment of the Church’s understanding of and ability to promote mental health”
James Lucey, Consultant Psychiatrist and Clinical Professor at Trinity College Dublin
“Mental Health Ireland admire the in-depth and sustainable approach taken in this project as it aims to support and respond to the mental health needs of the community”
Martin Rogan, CEO Mental Health Ireland
“This is a very important area and no doubt would be of great benefit to those within the Church of Ireland and the wider community”
David Webb, CEO Protestant Aid
