Reflections from our first Sanctuary last week

As you may have read on our blog or seen on our social media, we are working in partnership with Mind, Turning Point and Framework to ensure people experiencing a mental health crisis have a place of safety and source of hope in the evenings.

It’s around 1.30am as I write this, and I just arrived home from our first Sanctuary session. I have been involved in the development of this service from the very first workshop back in 2019 and it’s wonderful to be able to say we are working closely with partners to deliver this service and watch all our hard work come to life.

In our very first session, we were able to offer tailored support to people who needs us to help them through the right now. The session was filled with compassion, human connection and most importantly, hope.

If you, or someone you know needs some support for a mental health crisis, here is some more information about the Sanctuary:

Who is the service for?

The service is open to you if you are:

  • Aged 18+
  • Living in Nottingham City/County
  • Experiencing a self-defined mental health crisis
  • Needing out-of-hours mental health support

What support is available?

  • Recovery-focused crisis support in a trusted and consistent space
  • Same-day support, available over telephone, video call, or face-to-face (when necessary & COVID-safe)
  • If required, onwards community referrals can be made

How do I get support?

There will be a Sanctuary open during every night of the week. Here’s a timetable of all the Sanctuaries, their locations, and how to refer to each one (each provider works ever so slightly differently, so the referral processes may vary).

https://www.turning-point.co.uk/services/mental-health/crisis-support/nottingham-crisis-sanctuaries

A mental health crisis doesn’t operate on a 9-5 schedule. If the evenings feel too tough to manage, I hope you know that we are here now, as and when you need us.

Katie – One (very) tired but proud crisis service manager