Publish date: 9 May 2022
The Trust will be teaming up with Queen’s Park Rangers Football Club to help tackle mental health problems in the community.
A team of mental health professionals from the Trust will be moving into Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium, home of the football club, in a bid to reach out to more people in need of mental health support.
The announcement of the partnership marks the start of Mental Health Awareness Week 2022 and this year’s theme is loneliness.
Dr Christopher Hilton, a psychiatrist and Executive Director of Local Services at West London NHS Trust said: “This partnership between West London NHS Trust and QPR in the Community Trust is a significant step towards making sure people in need of mental health support in the local community can get access to it more easily. The surrounding areas of White City, North Kensington and Shepherd’s Bush have a wide mix of wealthy and deprived populations yet referral rates into mental health services are lower than average”.
Championing the scheme, ex-England and QPR winger Andy Sinton who now works as a club ambassador discussed his own experiences of reaching out to vulnerable people in lockdown:
“This partnership working with NHS mental health professionals will build on the links we have with our local community.
“It was really important that we kept in touch with vulnerable supporters and ex-players throughout the lockdown by ringing round and checking in on them. Loneliness can lead to all sorts of other mental and physical health problems so having NHS professionals working alongside our community team will be a great way to make sure local residents are getting the support they need”.
Christopher, 65, from Shepherd’s Bush said: “I struggle with depression, anxiety and OCD and have often struggled with suicidal thoughts.
“I have been supported by some really good people, my psychiatrist is excellent as is my allocated Link Worker. It has been a horrible and lonely time for a lot of people just now and struggling with mental health problems already just made it worse. I have got the medication I need and a lot of other support too”.
To find out more about the Trust’s Mental Health Integrated Network Teams click here.
To find out more about QPR in the Community Trust click here.
