The PROPS Mental Health project started last year and has really worked well.    This programme offers support and help to people with severe and enduring mental health issues. However, people with mild and moderate mental health issue will not be excluded. The project will specifically focus on working with BME people with severe/enduring mental health issues. The project aims to bridge the gap between people with mental health issues and the wider community. It enables service users and local community/voluntary organisations to realise and make use of the valuable skills and abilities that people with mental health issues have to offer the community. It improves the volunteers’ self esteem, increases their skills, enables them to contribute to their community and it will give them the opportunity to value themselves, through their work and their contribution.  Volunteering will enhanced the physical and mental well being of volunteers’, as they learn new skills, make new friends, and physically get involve in various tasks.

This project has the intention and capacity to bring lasting improvement in health and general well-being for volunteers with mental health issues, by enabling them to be proactive and participate in every day life in their local communities and beyond. Also, this project has a great scope to deliver organisational and intra-organisational benefits, for all participating groups.

The aim of the project is to promote, support, train and offer advice on volunteering for people with mental health issues in Hackney. 

Project activities will include:

• Promote volunteering to mental health service users, and encourage them to get involved
• Help volunteers to decide what area of volunteering they are interested in, what challenges/barriers they may face, and how these might be overcome
• Identify volunteering opportunities which match peoples’ interests
• Provide training and advice to organisations (usually mental health awareness training, as well as volunteering good practice)
• Facilitate support for volunteers (eg regular social sessions, training to build confidence and communication skills)

The PROPS Ex-offenders project started in July of this year and has had many referrals.  The project offers Opportunity and Access for All – by engaging disadvantage people focusing on those in the criminal justice system, offering them pathways out of crime, through volunteering with accredited training.  On going support and mentoring will improve their chances in life – with better access to training and development of their skills, both soft skills and basic skills.  Volunteers will also gain work-related skills such as ICT, administration,horticulture, coaching and teaching, mentoring, arts and craft skills – the different areas depending on the volunteering opportunities chosen by each individual participant.  There is also a chance to recruit volunteers who are former/current service users within the program to help beneficiaries and create a ‘buddy program’

The aims of the project is to improve the quality of life for people who have served sentences, to help them build life without crime, to encourage them to play a more productive role through engaging positively with community organisations and therefore to integrate them back into their local communities.

The project will include:

• Deliver training to improve chances of employability
• Develop volunteering placements to gain valued experience
• Raise awareness and improve conditions for people in the criminal justice system by helping them re-build their lives
• Provide pathways for all project participants to engage positively with their local community and others
• Alternative ways of progression and supporting, buddying someone in the same position  - highlighting possible options other than reoffending

Working with ex- offenders strengthens the local community, because it offers them the opportunity to volunteer and give something back to their local communities while at the same time helping them to become more confident and active citizens, by encouraging them to re-integrate with their local community. This project aims to help create a second chance and help those get back on track as it raises awareness and promotes pathways other than crime, the project also aims to prevent people from offending and re-offending, thus leading to better and improved urban environment which all sections of the local community will be able to enjoy.

Please check out our link below which is for ex-offenders that want to volunteer

http://props-vchackney.tumblr.com