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We are a leading Scottish voluntary organisation working in the field of mental health. Founded in 1985, we provided the first registered mental health supported accommodation service in Scotland.
We now provide an extensive range of person-centred support services for adults and young people, supporting around 1000 people each week.
We campaign to raise awareness of mental health issues and reduce the social stigma attached to them. We also offer training and consultancy on a range of issues related to health and wellbeing.
Innovation and recovery at the heart of new Penumbra Strategic Plan
Leading mental health charity Penumbra has published its Strategic Plan for the next four years, aspiring to be the “most innovative, recovery focused and outcomes orientated organisation in mental health in Scotland.”
The document outlines five strategic aims and identifies new targets and milestones the charity hopes to achieve by 2020.
The five aims at the heart of new Strategic Plan are:
Recovery – To ensure that all mental health services and activities are hopeful, personalised and recovery focused
People – To ensure a highly valued, skilled and involved workforce
Innovation – To develop, support and provide innovative responses that promote recovery, social inclusion and citizenship for people with mental health problems
Influence – To promote mental health and wellbeing in communities by influencing; policy makers, funders and others
Improvement – To ensure quality and continuous improvement in all business processes to achieve our mission
The document also identifies a number of more specific aims, particularly the expansion of peer work, international recognition for I.ROC, the development of first response services across Scotland, and achieving the EFQM Recognised for Excellence award.
As part of the plan, each year the charity will review the activities it undertakes in pursuit of these aims to ensure progress is being made towards the 2020 targets.
The document also sets out the Charity’s core values – recovery, human rights, participation, and person centered support – and reaffirms Penumbra’s vision for society and mission statement.
Vision: Penumbra envisages a society where people with mental health problems expect recovery and are accepted, supported and have the resources to fulfil their potential.
Mission: Penumbra will provide, support and influence services and activities that improve the mental health and wellbeing of people.To achieve this we shall seek creative and innovative solutions and work in partnership with agencies and people who share our vision.
More information about The Strategic Plan 2016-2020 can be found here.
Falkirk mothers speak up about their experience of post natal depression and postpartum psychosis
As part of Penumbra’s perinatal mental health project in Falkirk, two mothers have gone on camera to discuss how they were affected by mental illness during pregnancy.
Fiona (joined by young son Noah) agreed to be interviewed about her experience of Postnatal depression, which affects about one in 10 women during the perinatal period. Fiona has been working with the Project in Falkirk to help raise awareness of pregnancy-related mental illness.
Deborah and her husband Chris also agreed to be interviewed about their experience. Deborah experienced postpartum psychosis, which affects about one in every 1000 new mothers, after giving birth to her daughter Evie.
Deborah made the brave decision to appear on camera after reading about the Penumbra project in her local paper.
Click on the image above to watch a short video about the event
Organisations gather to highlight mental health support in Perth and Kinross
Community groups, charities and service providers in Perth and Kinross gathered last month to highlight the different types of social care and community support available for people with mental health problems.
Leading mental health charity Penumbra organised the Working Together event at McDiarmid Park, home of St Johnstone FC, to encourage people to learn more about Self Directed Support (SDS) – a new system which gives people more choice over how their care is delivered.
William Wright from Penumbra Perth and Kinross said:
“We wanted to bring different organisations together to share knowledge of Self Directed Support and what assets, resources and services are out there in the community.
“Often events about care are a bit dry, so we wanted to organise something which would be fun and interactive.
“When different organisations work together we believe they deliver better support for people, so what better way to highlight this than team sports? We organised five-a-side football, walking football and a tug of war to get people involved and working together.
“It’s a bit unorthodox but it helped to create a positive atmosphere which encouraged people to think creatively about how support is delivered.”
The five-a-side football tournament featured teams made up of volunteers from various community groups, health and social care providers, service users and carers. There was also a walking football match overseen by Perth Six Circle – a local project that assists adults experiencing exclusion – and a tug of war overseen by Blue Sky Experiences – a company which specialises in team building.
Afterwards refreshments were provided and participants were invited to meet organisations to get more information about self direct support and what local support is available. PKAVS, Mindspace, Breathing Space, Perth and Kinross Council, Giraffe Trading, and The Care and Wellbeing Cooperative were all in attendance.
Penumbra began working in Perth and Kinross to promote self directed support in 2015. The project has delivered POWWOWs (Penumbra Workshops on Wellbeing) and recently took part in the Perth and Kinross Wellbeing Festival. The project has been funded by Perth and Kinross Council.
Aberdeen mental health service recognised for providing outstanding care
A report published last month by the Care Inspectorate – the independent body responsible for monitoring care services in Scotland – has recognised the outstanding care provided by an Aberdeen mental health service.
Inspectors visited the Penumbra Aberdeen Mental Health Service at Back Wynd in Aberdeen city centre at the beginning of the year to assess the support provided, staffing and how the service is managed. The service secured “excellent” grades in all inspection criteria, improving on the “good” rating it received when it was inspected last summer.
The outstanding report means Penumbra – one of Scotland’s largest mental health charities – now has five services in the city which have achieved excellent grades across the board.
Penumbra Aberdeen Mental Health Service is also one of only two Housing Support Services in the city to have achieved excellent grades in all inspection criteria.
Speaking about the Care Inspectorate report Penumbra Area Manager Suzanne Stokes said:
“This is an outstanding report for the Aberdeen Mental Health Service and I would like to thank all the staff for working so hard to achieve this. The fact that Penumbra now has five services rated excellent across Aberdeen is an amazing achievement.”
Penumbra’s Ellon Road Short Breaks, Papermill Gardens Supported Living Service, Aberdeen Nova Project and Rosemount Terrace Support Accommodation Service have also received excellent grades from the Care Inspectorate.
Penumbra launch mew mental health crisis support service in Aberdeenshire
People experiencing distress in Aberdeenshire now have access to a new support service. From 1 March, Aberdeenshire 1st Response has been providing short term support for people who are at crisis point.
Funded through the Scottish Government Mental Health Innovation Fund, the service is modelled on Penumbra’s successful 1st Response service in Aberdeen city.
Aberdeenshire 1st Response provides a compassionate and effective response to people in distress, and encourage those ‘at risk’ to engage with other services that may benefit them over the longer term.
The service is specifically designed for people aged 16 years and above who require short term support or who may be at crisis point. This includes those who self harm, attempt suicide or who are experiencing high levels of distress.
Support is provided by telephone, email, text or through face to face appointments. There is no application form and no waiting list. The service is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
Project marks Self Harm Awareness Day with film premiere
Penumbra’s Edinburgh Self Harm Project marked Self Harm Awareness Day (1 March) with the first showing of a film directed by Gen Bicknell, which tells the stories of three very different people who are supported by the Project – a young skateboarder, a university student and a retired librarian.
The film explores the three subjects self harm and contrasts this with healthy coping mechanisms they also use, such as trampolining or skateboarding.
Explaining why the Edinburgh Self Harm Project decided to produce the film, Tammy Kirk, Development Worker at the Project said:
“We wanted to produce something which gave a new perspective on self harm and challenged the stigma around it. Self harm is often seen as something that only teenagers do, but as the film shows people of all ages and from all walks of life can turn to self harm as a means of coping.
“We hope that by publicising these people’s stories the film will help to tackle stigma and encourage people to see self harm as a negative behaviour which can be changed in the same way someone can reduce their smoking or drinking.”
The film will form part of the Project’s awareness raising work. It will be shown during sessions with community groups and members of the public, and the Project also plans to submit the film to selected film festivals later in the year.