Local people with experience of mental health support are being invited to join a group tackling depression and suicide in Dawlish.

Dawlish Town Council set up its Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Working Group about a year ago – before the Covid-19 pandemic took hold.

Throughout the year, its four members worked hard to raise awareness of the help and support available for those whose mental health was suffering.

Their timing could not have been better, as the pandemic led to redundancies and unemployment, isolation and loss.

More and more people suffered from loneliness, stress, anxiety, feelings of depression, and suicidal thoughts about the future.

The working group's widely distributed leaflet, packed with helpful advice and contact details for local and national support groups, was welcomed by Dawlish's residents.

Public recruitment postponed due to Covid-19

The group had always intended to co-opt four members of the public with relevant experience, but this was put on hold because of the lockdown restrictions.

But now its chair, Cllr Carole Tamlyn, is keen to recruit people to join the group's monthly Zoom meetings.

She is looking for people who have skills, knowledge, qualifications or experience in mental health, social work, nursing or support groups, acquired through employment or voluntary work.

Their role will be to advise the other group members, using knowledge gained from real-life experience.

Cllr Tamlyn explained: "Working groups are informal gatherings, tasked with looking at a specific issue.

"They're generally not open to the public, but there is discretion to invite or co-opt members of the public who might have expertise in the area the group is investigating. This helps to inform the group's feedback and recommendations to the council."

The group's other members are Cllr Lin Goodman-Bradbury, Cllr Rosie Dawson and Cllr Mike James. The Mayor, Cllr Alison Foden, and deputy Mayor, Cllr Val Mawhood, have 'ex officio' membership and have supported the group's activities since it began.

Anyone who is interested in joining the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Working Group should contact the town clerk, Andrew Mckenzie, for an application form, by emailing [email protected]

Read more about the group's activities: Posters go up around Dawlish as part of mental wellbeing initiative