Mental Health Mates

Aim

Continue providing nationwide peer to peer support via community walks, to help people connect without fear of judgement.

It starts with a walk.  

Mental Health Mates is a nationwide network of peer-to-peer support groups that help people  move for their mental health and connect with others in a judgement-free space.  

Who we are:  

In 2016, Mental Health Mates founder Bryony Gordon found herself struggling with her mental  health. Unsure of where to turn, she took to Twitter to ask if anyone fancied joining her for a walk,  to see if getting outdoors and connecting would help with how she and others were feeling.  

One cold, February morning, almost 20 people joined Bryony for a stroll around London’s Hyde  Park, reaping the benefits of moving for their mental health and connecting in a space free of  judgement.  

Mental Health Mates was born.  

Fast forward seven years, and regular community-based, volunteer-led, walks happen in over 150  locations across the UK helping people take their first steps to feeling better.  

And as for Bryony?  

Well, that first walk set her on a pathway for a better and healthier relationship with her mental  health and has since seen her run marathons (sometimes in her pants), embark on wild swims and  take on crazy challenges to raise vital finds for Mental Health Mates to help us help people across  the country take those first steps, with the support of others. 

This project successfully funded on 12th October 2023