Health and wellbeing
Over 1,000 men reached through men’s wellbeing project in Walsall
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More than 1,000 men have engaged in activities as part of a year-long project to improve the wellbeing of men living and working in Walsall.
The Where I Am project was a year-long programme between May 2024 and April 2025, delivered by The MindKind Projects and funded by Walsall Council Public Health.
The project delivered a variety of activities, including six borough-wide engagement events which attracted over 700 attendees, to raise awareness around men’s health and provide safe, informal spaces for open dialogue, making connections and gathering feedback.
A strategic development group was formed to enhance men's mental health and wellbeing across the borough. Collaborating with various partners, the group developed a Men’s Wellbeing Website with a blog and directory of resources and developed the Men’s Ambassador Programme to train local men as peer connectors and champions.
Twenty-one men living or working in Walsall engaged with the men’s forum. Ten went on to become ambassadors, bringing a wealth of lived experience and passion from different backgrounds. The ambassadors have or will engage in training to empower them to support men across Walsall.
The project also heard from 372 men through a questionnaire on what matters to them around mental health and wellbeing, co-designed and co-created with members of the forum.
“ The Where I Am project has been a transformative initiative for our community. By empowering men with lived experiences to lead and co-create mental health interventions, we have fostered a supportive and inclusive environment. We are incredibly pleased with the work undertaken by The MindKind Projects and we hope the momentum will be sustained for the wellbeing of all men in Walsall. “
“ We’re proud to share our Where I Am report which amplifies the voices of men in Walsall. This report is based on our engagement with over 1,000 men living and working across Walsall. A report that listens deeply to how men speak about mental health and wellbeing, how they’re impacted by it, and what needs to change. It’s a powerful call for culturally competent, preventative support that meets men where they are. At The MindKind Projects, we are proud to say we are responding to this call in innovative and exciting ways, always led by our communities. “
The Where I Am project report has outlined a number of recommendations to improve mental health support for men in the community. This includes training men with lived experience to become ambassadors, utilising spaces where men already feel safe such as gyms, barbershops and sports clubs for outreach, working with men to create relevant mental health programmes, showing that asking for help is a sign of strength and responsibility, using language and methods that resonate with men’s experiences and investing in long-term support for community initiatives.
To read the full report, visit The MindKind Projects website.
To find out more about The MindKind Projects and get involved, email info@themindkindprojects.com or call 01922 632170.
