Mental health charities offering frontline worker support

Mind, Samaritans, Shout, Hospice UK and The Royal Foundation today launch Our Frontline, a combination of 1-2-1 support and online resources for NHS workers, carers, the Blue Light emergency services and key workers who are putting their mental health under pressure, while many of us do our bit by staying at home.

At a time when face to face contact is limited, Our Frontline, ourfrontline.org, brings together a number of services to provide important workers with round the clock 1-2-1 support. Frontline staff and keyworkers can call or text a trained volunteer and access specially developed online resources, toolkits and advice to support their mental health and emotional wellbeing through this challenging time.

The Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge is formally supporting Our Frontline and helping to ensure that frontline staff and key workers in need of help are aware that the services are available. The Foundation has a long history of raising awareness of the importance of mental health and played a leading role in creating Shout and the Mental Health at Work programme, both of which are key elements of the Our Frontline initiative.

The Duke of Cambridge will today chair a roundtable call with representatives from the emergency services sector and the NHS, in which he will hear more about the mental health challenges impacting keyworkers in the UK, and how Our Frontline can support them. Those on the call include NHS England and NHS Improvement, Faculty of Pre Hospital Care – Royal College of Surgeons, Mind, Lifelines Scotland, Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, National Police Chiefs' Council, The Fire Fighters Charity, Police Care UK and The Ambulance Staff Charity.

Mind CEO Paul Farmer said: "Mind is delighted to be involved in Our Frontline - providing support for our hardworking key workers. Every day, those working in health and social care, 999 services and other vital roles – staff working in supermarkets, pharmacies, transport, catering and cleaning to name a few – face huge challenges to their physical and mental health. That's why it's so important they can easily access information and contact trained advisors to help promote good mental health, any time of day or night."

Samaritans CEO Ruth Sutherland added: "As a former NHS nurse myself, I am so proud that we are able to work with some of the UK's leading organisations to support our key workers and their mental health. Our trained volunteers are a listening ear for anyone, especially those who are putting their mental health under immense short and long-term pressure to provide our frontline against Coronavirus."

For more information, visit www.ourfrontline.org or support the campaign by following @OurFrontlineUK on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.