10th April, 2025
Dorset Mind has received a financial boost to help it provide vital mental health support for 11 to 16 year olds across the county.
The charity approached bus operator Damory, through its community fund, and received £500 towards its ‘Waiting Well’ project.
“As a mental health charity, Dorset Mind has been supporting people across the region for more than 75 years,” said Tracey Digby, Waiting Well project manager at Dorset Mind. “Our work focuses on early intervention, crisis prevention, and ongoing mental health support for both adults and young people.
“One of our flagship programmes - the ‘Waiting Well’ project provides structured support for young people who are on long NHS waiting lists for Child and Adolescent Services. These delays leave people vulnerable to deteriorating mental health, social isolation and school disengagement.
“‘Waiting Well’ bridges this gap by offering one-to-one and group support, psycho-educational materials, and resilience-building activities. We intend to use the extra funds from Damory towards expanding these services - to reach more young people across Dorset, particularly in under-served rural areas.
“We’d like to thank Damory for its continuing efforts in helping us deliver these essential services across our area.”
Paul Knight, Damory operations manager, added: “We’re pleased to be supporting Dorset Mind with this latest donation. Damory provides school bus services across the region, with the students getting to know their regular drivers well. They build a rapport with them - and this is important, particularly in the more isolated areas.
“We know this donation will be put to very good use towards improving mental health outcomes for young people across the county - reducing crisis situations, and helping to alleviate pressure on overstretched NHS services.”