West Kent Patient Consultative Committee (PCC) meeting

The Patients Consultative Committee provides an opportunity for service users and carers to work in partnership with the Kent and Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT). The next West Kent PCC meeting will be on 17 January, from 11am to 1pm, at

Kingswood CMHT
180/186 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1EY

at which Kim Solly, Liason Psychiatry Service Manager, will be talking about handling mental health presentations at A&E.

Please contact Louis Dereham on 0800 587 6757 to let us know if you are coming.

SW Kent Recovery Team - Newsletter

The Recovery Team, based at Highlands House in Tunbridge Wells, have published the January edition of their service user newsletter "Head Lines". It contains a comprehensive and useful piece about Advance Statements/Directives, together with other interesting items about the Recovery Star, paid Peer Support work, ESA assessments and more....

NHS Health Trainer at Sevenoaks Area MInd

Starting from 6 January, you can make appointments to see an NHS Health Trainer at Sevenoaks Area Mind's centre in St John's Road, Sevenoaks. Health Trainers can offer 6-8 free sessions of support and advice to help you make positive health-related lifestyle changes. Read more on Sevenoaks Area Mind's website.

Rethink Mental Illness (Sevenoaks) newsletter

Click here to download the newsletter of Rethink Mental Illness in Vine Court Road, Sevenoaks.

Sevenoaks Area Mind Christmas Carol Concert

We invite you to our annual Christmas Carol Concert, at the United Reformed Church just up the road from our Sevenoaks Centre in St Johns Hill, to be followed by mince pies and mulled wine.

Thursday 15 December 2:30 – 4:30pm

Everybody welcome!

Opening of new Art Gallery and Christmas Fayre

Tunbridge Wells Mental Health Resource invite you to the opening of our new Art Gallery and Christmas Fayre taking place at our Hub Centre, 2a Grosvenor Park, Tunbridge Wells on Saturday 3rd December 10.30 - 3.30pm.

There will be an opportunity to stroll around our Art Gallery and view the wonderful work produced by our talented clients, whilst sampling some Christmas spirit with a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie with our compliments. Our Christmas stalls have an array of wonderful home made gifts, tombola, raffle, homemade cakes and even some treats for the children.

Come and join us and spend an enjoyable afternoon possibly picking up an early Christmas present or two!

The Power of Telling my Story

Help others learn from your experiences

Help services learn how to improve

A two day workshop for those who have a lived experience of mental health challenges. Those of us who have mental health challenges are strong, worthwhile people who have a story to tell which can encourage us, and those who hear it.

This two day practical workshop, led by trainers from Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, will cover:

• Recovery in mental health
• The recovery journey that we are all making
• The vital role and positive impact of ‘telling our story’
• The skills of story telling
• Opportunities for sharing our story to help further improve services

Building on your strengths and increasing confidence the course will equip you to tell your own recovery story; helping you to see the hero that you are.

Dates: 22nd & 23rd November, 2011 
Venue: Trinity Foyer, 20 Church Street, Maidstone ME14 1LY
Time: 9.30 - 4.45 each day

Travel expenses will be reimbursed and lunch and refreshments provided. For further information, or to apply to join this training please call or email Nick on 01227 81202

West Kent Patient Consultative Committee (PCC) meeting

The West Kent PCC is an opportunity for carers and service users to come along and work in partnership with the Kent and Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT).

The next meeting will be held at:

Kingswood CMHT
180/186 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1EY

on

Tuesday 15th November 2011
11:00am to 1:00pm

and will include a presentation from Bob Ditchburn, Service Manager, Maidstone Access Team, talking about the Access Service.

Please contact Lois Derham on 0800 587 6757 to let us know if you are coming.

Citizens Advice Bureau Bus

Tunbridge Wells & District Citizens Advice Bureaux now offer free, confidential advice from their new bus.

The CAB bus will be visiting the centre of your village on:

Benenden Monday AM

Sandhurst Monday PM

Frittenden Tuesday AM

Goudhurst Tuesday PM

Brenchley Wednesday AM

Horsmonden Wednesday PM

Hawkhurst Thursday AM

Lamberhurst Thursday PM


AM 10.30am to 12 noon
PM 1pm to 2.30pm

Coping with Life courses in Sevenoaks and Tonbridge

Sevenoaks Area Mind are launching a series of "Coping with Life" courses. Each is a 6-week psycho-educational evening class based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) principals. They are not therapy groups, rather they aim to help participants learn and develop coping strategies for themselves. The first three courses are:

Managing Depression
Managing Anxiety
Anger Management

Read more on their website, or see the flyer here. A fee is payable for these courses.

Equality and Inclusion in Social Care

Rethink Community Development Workers will be hosting this event, which will provide;
opportunities for networking, partnership working and training
information on the Equality Act 2010
presentation and workshops on inclision in mental health

The day is relevant for voluntary and statutory health and social care providers in South West Kent

Tuesday 11 October
10am - 1pm (lunch provided)
Tonbridge Baptist Church,
Tonbridge TN10 3HZ

To register your place email or call 01622 600296

West Kent Patient Consultative Committee (PCC) meeting

The West Kent PCC offers an opportunity for carers and service users to come along and work in partnership with the KMPT. The next meeting, on Tuesday 19th July at 11am, will be held at:

Kingswood CMHT
180/186 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1EY

Including presentations from:

Roger Davies, Consultant Psychotherapist, Head of Psychotherapy at the Brenchley Unit
talking about this service for people with Personality Disorders

Sara Hutchinson, Rethink Community Development Worker
talking about the Trust's new Community Engagement Strategy

Please contact Lois Derham on '0800 587 6757 if you are coming.

New service in Edenbridge

Sevenoaks Area Mind and MHR Reachout have joined together to launch a new service in Edenbridge. The Service User Forum is a free, friendly social group for information and support regarding mental health. You’ll meet like-minded, understanding people in a comfortable local environment, where you can have your say about issues that matter to you.

The group meets on alternate Tuesdays at the Edenbridge Leisure Centre from 1pm to 3pm. The next meeting is on 19 July. To find out more, call Sevenoaks Area Mind day services team on 01732 744950 or the Reachout co-ordinator on 07989 219185.

Altered Art Exhibition

The 2011 Altered Art exhibition, in the Orangery at Knole House, Sevenoaks, has attracted strong interest from people keen to purchase the original works on display. The exhibition has been organised by Sevenoaks Area Mind to showcase the skills and creativity of the people who use its services. Visitors to the exhibition, which runs until 19 July, have the opportunity to bid for the artworks on display. Admission to the exhibition is free. Read more here.

Volunteering at Sevenoaks Area Mind

Do you want to find out more about volunteering with Sevenoaks Area Mind?
If yes then please sign up for the next information session about volunteering on

Tuesday 19 July 10.30 - 12.30 at

Sevenoaks Centre
34 St Johns Road
Sevenoaks
TN13 3LW

Everyone is welcome for tea, coffee and cakes, and a chance to find out more about our work.

Asperger's Information and Networking Day

Sevenoaks Area Mind are pleased to announce further details of the Asperger's Information and Networking Day on

Thursday 7 July, 10am – 3pm, at the
Salvation Army Building
74-80 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1ED

Confirmed speakers include Dr Francis Harvey of the Kent & Medway Partnership Trust, with Jo Blamires and Des Walker of the Kent Autistic Trust. Lunch will be provided.

Download the flyer here or read full the details from Sevenoaks Area Mind here.

Please email or call 01732 744950 if you would like to book a place, as space is limited.

Peer Support - learning the lessons

A meeting for service users looking at how peer support – mental health service users supporting each other - is being developed in mental health services in the UK and beyond. KMPT has commissioned a user led review of current research on peer support. This meeting will highlight the results of this review and seek support in taking this important aspect of service improvement forward.

SPEAKER - Carolyn Anderson, KMPT Expert by Experience

Thursday 30th June
11.30am – 2 pm

Maidstone Community Support Centre
Marsham Street,
Maidstone ME14 1HH

A sandwich Lunch and refreshments provided. Transport costs for service users can be reimbursed; please call Nick on 01227 812020 for further info, to discuss your needs and to reserve a place.

Open to all users of mental health services and supporters.

Sevenoaks Area Mind at the Sevenoaks Festival

Sevenoaks Area Mind will have a stall in Bligh's Walk at the Sevenoaks Summer Festival on Saturday 18 June. Come along for the raffle, cakes, and to find out more about the organisation. Maybe bring a brolly...

Aspergers Day workshop

Sevenoaks Area Mind are pleased to announce that the much anticipated Aspergers Day workshop is now scheduled for

Thursday 7 July, 10am – 3pm, at the
Salvation Army Building
74-80 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1ED

Lunch will be provided. Further details will follow shortly.

Peer Support - the way forward

KMPT are holding an event aimed at both service users and staff considering how peer support is transforming mental health services in the UK, and how it can be put into action across Kent and Medway.

Thursday 7th July 10.00am - 4.00pm at

Lenham Community Centre, Groom Way,
Lenham, Near Maidstone ME17 2QT

For further information and an application form, see this flyer.

Meet your local mental heath services team!

Are you a patient/service user of mental health services at St Johns Centre in Sevenoaks, Highlands House in Tunbridge Wells, or the former Dry Hill Road in Tonbridge?

Do you want to help shape and improve your local mental health services, and have your voice heard?

Then you have an opportunity to meet the current team who help to influence services. They would love to see you for a chat and a cream tea.

Wednesday 4 May, 2pm at
Highlands House
10-12 Calverley Park Gardens
Tunbridge Wells TN1 2JN

or

Thursday 26 May, 2pm at
Sevenoaks Area Mind
34 St Johns Road
Sevenoaks TN13 3LW

For more information please contact Pat Morgan on 01892 709211

West Kent Patient Consultative Committee (PCC) meeting

The West Kent Patient Consultative Committee offers an opportunity for carers and service users to come along and work in partnership with the Kent and Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT).

On Tuesday 17th May 2011 at 11:00am, the next meeting will be held at:

Kingswood CMHT
180/186 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1EY

Rebecca Lowe, Care Programme Approach (CPA) & Care pathways Lead KMPT, is due to talk about

“The new CPA”

Please contact Tony Peploe or Lois Derham on 0800 587 6757 to let us know if you are coming.

Up and Running for women in Sevenoaks

Up and Running is an exercise group to help women beat depression, suitable for women who have mild to moderate depression or anxiety and who are not currently runners. There is plenty of evidence to show that exercise can be a great help to depressed people, and can in some cases be as effective as antidepressant medication. As it can be difficult to motivate yourself when feeling low, the mutual support and social aspects of being in a non-competitive, friendly group are important.

The programme starts with brisk walking and a small amount of jogging, then builds up gently over 8 weeks. A new group starts in May.

Read more on the Up and Running website (with full contact details) and on this BBC News report.

Changes to your Wellbeing Blog settings

Some improvements have been made to your local wellbeing blog.

Firstly, anyone can now comment on any of the posts. You do not have to be a registered user. So if you have something to say about anything you read here, let the rest of us know! 

Secondly, there are now two new ways to stay up-to-date with your local wellbeing blog, using two new options on the right hand menus, "Subscribe to" and "Follow by Email".

"Subscribe to" allows you to pick up a news feed with, amongst others Google Reader, My Yahoo and Atom RSS.

If that sounds complicated, the really easy option is "Follow by Email". Enter your email address, follow the simple verification instructions, and henceforth you'll get an email every time there is a new post!

Hitchhikers Guide to Recovery and Wellbeing - for mental health carers

“Kent and Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT) is committed to providing a service that is recovery-focused – supporting recovery and wellbeing.” (KMPT Recovery leaflet, March 2010.)

Carers FIRST have developed a 4 x ½ day training programme to unpack what this means in practice, both for carers themselves and their loved one. Delivered in partnership with KMPT over 4 consecutive weeks, it is hoped that the programme will enable carers to embrace the recovery approach, equip them to take an active role in supporting their loved ones recovery, and promote their own recovery.

Key themes being explored include:
·         The concept of recovery
·         Implications on service delivery
·         The role of carers in recovery
·         Promotion of wellbeing
·         Impact of recovery approach on carers role
·         Carers own recovery journey

The full schedule can be read here. The programme is open to all carers living within South West Kent and Maidstone, and is held at the Blackthorn Trust (Garden Room) in Maidstone and the Carers Centre in Tonbridge on Tuesdays 22 March to 12 April 09:30 - 13:00. There is no charge to attend, but participants are asked to book their place with Carers FIRST.

For more information or to book a place, call Vivienne or Fiona at Carers First on 01732 357555

Changes in the NHS - What will it mean for YOU and your doctor?

This Kent LINk Community Engagement Event is your chance to find out what is happening to your health and social care services.


The formal meeting will start at 10.45am although refreshments will be available from 10.00am to give people an opportunity to socialise and network. See full information and book your free place here.

Wednesday, 23 March 2011, 10am - 3pm

The Camden Centre,
Royal Victoria Place
Market Square
Tunbridge Wells
TN1 2SW

Art Uniting People - Spring Exhibition

Art Uniting People is a non-profit organisation who have run two successful annual exhibitions in 2009 and 2010 to promote the talents of artists around Kent, including professionals, amateurs and those with mental health and physical disabilities. This year, for the first time, there is also a Spring Exhibition at


County Hall
Maidstone
ME14 1XQ



from 14th -28th March, 10:30am-4:30pm, Monday to Friday.


Entry is FREE

Changes in the NHS - What will it mean for YOU and your doctor?

This Community Engagement Event, held by the Kent Local Involvement Network (LINk), will be held on Wednesday 23 March 2011, 10am - 3pm, at

The Camden Centre
Market Square
Tunbridge Wells TN1 2SW

More details and a flyer are to follow.

Learning from Experience 2 - How are we doing?

This event is for service users and carers and is a follow up to the actions that the Kent & Medway Partnership Trust have put into place since the National Patient Survey of last year.

Tuesday 15 March, 10:30am - 3:30pm

Upstairs lounge, The Salvation Army
74-80 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1ED

Lunch is provided. Registration is required, so for more information see the flyer here or call Maria Duran on 01227 812034.

Resourceful Recovery conference

As mental health care providers, service users, families and carers are encouraged to develop partnerships, you are invited to join the West Kent & Medway team of the Early Interventions in Psychosis Service for a day of new learning, networking and refection to explore how resourcefulness supports recovery.


Thursday 24 March, 0900-1630 at
Hilton Hotel
Bearsted Road, Weavering
Maidstone ME14 5AA


For full details and the registration form click here, or call Amy Draper on 01622 721800.

Personal Development Fund - up to £500 for service users & carers!

A reminder about the Personal Development Fund, which is intended to promote the personal development of individuals living right across Kent whose lives have been directly or indirectly affected by severe or persistent mental ill health.

The fund has been able to pay for things like conferences and training courses, travel and accommodation for such events, art materials, Reiki training, laptops, printers and so on.

A panel of service users, carers and voluntary organisations meet every three months to decide on awards. For more information, see this flyer. To apply, download an application form in either Word or PDF format.

The scheme is funded by Kent County Council and administered by Sevenoaks Area Mind.

Your feedback on community mental health in Kent and Medway

Medway PCT, who lead the development of mental health services across Kent and Medway, are asking for your help in looking at how these services can be improved. They would like to ask service users and carers six simple questions about the services they are using - including what works, what doesn't work, and what are the key factors that make a good service.

This is a great opportunity to have your voice heard!

The survey can be completed very simply online here, or alternatively you can download the survey in Word or PDF format to complete and return by post or email.

Please make sure your voice is heard by Friday 18 March!

West Kent Patient Consultative Committee (PCC)

The West Kent Patient Consultative Committee (PCC) is an opportunity for carers and service users to come along and work in partnership with the Kent and Medway Partnership Trust (KMPT). The next meeting will be at the Kingswood Community Mental Health Team at:

180/186 Union Street
Maidstone ME14 1EY

on Friday 18 March at 11:00am, when Heather Penn, Vocational Services Manager, will talk about help and support available for those considering returning to work.

Please let Tony Peploe or Lois Derham know if you are coming, on 0800 587 6757.

No Health without Mental Health

The government have published "No health without mental health - A cross-government mental health outcomes strategy for people of all ages." A news item on the Live It Well website gives details of where you can read this, and a sample of responses from relevant organisations.

Sevenoaks Area Mind - places available for low cost counselling

The counselling service at Sevenoaks Area Mind, which normally has a waiting list, currently has places available for low cost counselling. Unlike many other providers, counselling sessions are not limited to a fixed number of sessions. Counselling can be offered for up to a year, and even beyond in exceptional cases. Self-referrals are welcome, contact Sevenoaks Area Mind by email or call 01732 744950