First Fortnight Limited
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Mission Statement
First Fortnight is a charity-based organisation with the expressed aim of challenging mental health prejudice through the creative arts. We believe the arts allow us to create a space where people can talk about mental health issues in a non-scripted manner. Once that conversation has begun, we hope this will then help to change people’s perceptions about an issue that affects us all with one in four of us set to experience a mental health problem at some point in our lives. With that in mind, we hope to make the First Fortnight of each year synonymous with mental health awareness, challenging prejudice and ending stigma. Founded in 2009, First Fortnight staged its first two-week arts festival in 2012. The charity has since become a mental health service provider with the establishment in 2013 of the First Fortnight Centre for Creative Therapies. The centre currently employs two psychotherapists providing art-therapy for individuals experiencing homelessness and mental ill-health in Dublin.
About This Cause
First Fortnight Festival Mental health stigma is such a prevalent social problem relevant to all of us. We challenge mental health prejudice in our community through the creative arts. The other aspect of our charity, the centre, helps one of the most vulnerable members of our community, the homeless, with their mental health. We are the only Irish mental health arts charity which provides art therapy and organises a mental health arts festival. Where there are prejudicial and discriminatory attitudes to mental ill health of any kind, the outcome is the experience of social and economic stigma. Where people experience stigma the outcome is silence and fear. We know and understand that silence and fear of seeking help or even talking about mental health are contributory elements that, for some make suicide a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Through working with our mental health partners, See Change, Mental Health Reform and Mental Health Ireland we have developed a comprehensive understanding of the research that underpins best practice approaches to stigma reduction. We know that events that include and involve participation – in a welcoming and stimulating environment – increase the likelihood of making a positive impact. By producing a high quality arts festival with an invitation for society to join a conversation about mental health, we hope to contribute to a national campaign that ends the social stigma attached to individuals experiencing mental ill health. In turn we hope to reach out to people who may think of suicide as an option or a solution, and encourage them to speak out and ask for help. We are a communications focused project that seeks to reach those that may not naturally be drawn to the issue. By taking a different approach we can be heard by a different audience. In short we work towards a vision of a changed society where people who feel utterly alone are encouraged to trust others enough not to judge them harshly, but rather respond with compassion and understanding. As highly active members of See Change-The national campaign for the reduction of stigma in mental health, we are a part of cross sectoral national campaign and are supported by the work of our campaign partners, many of whom who have been funded by the office of suicide prevention and share our goals on this issue. The festival prompts people to assess their attitudes towards mental health and to raise awareness of the stigma of mental health and the need to challenge this. Feedback from the festival shows the impact it has each year. It was acknowledged by attendees how effective the Arts are as a form of expression, an outlet and a medium to fight stigma. There was a resounding clear message that people are aware that mental health can affect anyone and are open to talking about mental health and living with, working with, living nearby and continuing friendships with those who have mental health problems. There is still work to do in challenging the fear, stigma and around reframing attitudes towards the recovery or management of mental health problems. There also is a need to clarify further the reasons why people are hesitant to have others know if they are experiencing mental health problems. The feedback highlights the progress of the festival but also the fact there is more work to do and that there is a strong need for the festival’s work to continue. We aim each year to have an even stronger nationwide campaign and consequently, a greater reach. This is also done while still maintaining high quality festival events. First Fortnight Centre for Creative Therapies Those with mental ill health can feel vulnerable, isolated and disengaged from their community. In particular those who are homeless are one of the most vulnerable, fringe groups of society who badly need support. They have a statistically high prevalence of mental health problems, sexual abuse histories, disabilities and addictions yet are difficult to engage with the currently available services. Research by homeless service providers in Dublin, such as the Dublin Simon community indicates clearly the high prevalence of mental health difficulties in homeless individuals. Our service is currently focused on individuals with severe and enduring mental health problems with a high incidence of clients experiencing psychosis. This project aims to see sustained engagement in treatment through the provision of an innovative treatment modality and through close partnership and holistic care planning with referral agencies. It aims to contribute to an improvement in objective levels of wellness, self-esteem and resilience of individuals with profound and long standing experiences of mental ill health. Improvements in mental health will also impact wider services relevant to this client group such as increased tenancy sustainment and increased community involvement and development. Our current service of 2 part time art psychotherapists has the potential to facilitate 16 individual client contact hours per week similar to the caseload of one full time therapist working in the National Counselling Service.