Celebrating the success of our Be Well Hubs in Merton

Members of the community came together at a celebration event organised by Merton Citizens on Saturday 28 January to celebrate the opening of 10 ‘Be Well Hubs’ within the borough.

Made up of libraries, faith groups and community organisations, the hubs have been set up to develop safe spaces for local people to turn to when they feel their mental health is low or simply to feel more connected with their local community.

The hubs’ main purposes are to de-stigmatise mental health, to use community organising principles to build strong relationships with local health services, and to organise leaders to listen and take action on the barriers and systemic problems impacting mental health. They also report back on key themes and trends from their communities.

Ann Beasley CBE, South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust Chair, and South London Listens co-Chair said: ‘I am incredibly proud to see so many Be Well hubs being set up across the region. The hubs were designed to be flexible so whatever challenges may be impacting our communities’ mental health, the hubs are there to support them. I would also like to thank the Local Authority for working with us to ensure that all of the libraries in Merton have become hubs – this is the sort of collaboration that will make a real difference in our boroughs.’

Councillor Caroline Cooper-Marbiah, Merton’s Cabinet Member for libraries, said: ‘We are thrilled that our libraries are a part of this programme. Libraries are embedded within their communities and already provide a safe and welcoming place for people to visit. Becoming a Be Well Hub means we are better able to signpost people to access care and support services.’

Richard James, Chief Executive Officer of YMCA St Paul’s Group, said: “We’re delighted that YMCA Wimbledon was chosen to become the first Be Well Hub in Merton. We are already home to a cross-section of the community, who come through our one front door to access a wide range of services, so being a Be Well Hub is a great way to show our commitment to responding to the needs of local people. As a charity, our vision is to create places where young people thrive and communities flourish and so we’re so pleased to be a part of this initiative.”

The South London Listens action plan was coproduced with service users after speaking with over 6,000 members of the community.