Two East Midlands charities which are aiming to use the power of swimming and music to help boost mental wellbeing and reduce a sense of isolation among young men have won hundreds of pounds of vital funding after taking part in an online event supported by Derbyshire firm Lubrizol.
Community groups The Island and Blue Tonic have been given £525 each to develop new projects aimed at helping the mental health of people living in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire after they both participated in the DAN Soup event last month.
Lubrizol has supported the DAN Soup sessions for the past three years and contributed £250 to an overall prize pot of £1,050, which was then put up for grabs in a Dragons Den-style contest, with four organisations pitching for the funding.
The Island, a Nottingham group set up to work with young men to help them reduce feelings of isolation by using music and art has been given £525 by DAN Soup, which is supported by Derbyshire firm Lubrizol.
In the end, the three judges and online audiences decided that two rather than one of the food causes deserved the money and split the money equally between The Island, which is based in Nottingham, and Blue Tonic, which is based in Long Eaton.
Pitching on behalf of The Island was Benjamin Zięć, a professional musician who aims to turn young men away from suicide by encouraging them to express themselves through creative writing, illustration and storytelling.
The idea is that by telling their stories through these means, they will benefit from the increase in self-esteem and fulfilment that comes through creativity.
Blue Tonic, which is based in Erewash, meanwhile, wants to work with 16 to 25-year-olds by giving them the opportunity to spend more time in and around water by holding arranged swimming or paddle-board sessions.
Its pitch was presented by Scott Clayton and Paul Dickens, who believe that water-based activities – or even just being by the water – raises people’s spirits and improves their sense of well-being.
The charity is now looking for a venue on the Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire border where it can store equipment and hold activities on a regular basis.
Scott Clayton, from Long Eaton-based Blue Tonic, which won £525 from DAN Soup, which was supported by Lubrizol, to help it work with 16 to 25-year-olds by giving them the opportunity to spend more time in and around water by holding arranged swimming or paddle-board sessions in order to raise their spirits and improve their mental health.
Karen Clegg, who represented Lubrizol on the panel, said that while all four participants were worthy causes, The Island and Blue Tonic just had the edge and were deserving recipients of the funding.
She said: “I have been a judge ever since these events began and the line up this time was stronger than ever, with every one of them talking about how they would help to boost local’s people’s mental health and wellbeing.
“It was clear from their presentations what a dramatic effect the coronavirus has had on everyone’s mental health but it was wonderful to see how these projects had strong ideas on how they would harness their own skills and passions to help other people.
“Lubrizol has been working hard on a global scale to help its colleagues and communities through these difficult times and we are proud to have played our part in helping these projects to have got the funding they so richly deserve.”
