Men Changing Lives (MCL), which was founded and is run by St Vincent’s Ely Bridge, is a support programme that puts mental wellbeing first and supports local men who are struggling.
The programme that is specifically built around supporting men through difficult circumstances is a free service available to all in the Ely who feel they could benefit from the support of the centre.
So far Men Changing Lives has already helped a range of people from ex-offenders who have recently been released and want to build a better way of life for themselves, to men who suffer from depression who want to try and improve their mental health, to men who are struggling in their family life and want to better themselves for their loved ones.
Whatever the reason, Men Changing Lives is open-to-all in a safe, non-judgmental environment where they can be honest and open whilst improving themselves.
Sessions for MCL currently runs every Friday with around 25-35 people turning up each week to socialise, be heard and listen. This safe space ensures that men in the area have somewhere to turn for support whether they need help with addiction or recovery, guidance for housing and financial issues, or just somewhere to go once a week to escape isolation.
Centre Manager at St Vincent’s Ely Bridge, Nathan Harding, is a strong advocate for men’s mental health and wellbeing and encourages all men who are struggling to reach out.
“Our centre is based in an area of high deprivation and there just isn’t a lot of support around for men so this programme was designed specifically to support men to build up their self-esteem and let them know that there is help and hope for the future.
“It’s a 12-week programme that allows men to build up their emotional resilience and manage their physical health and wellbeing – it gives them a safe space to speak out and talk.”
Nathan Butler, Funding Officer at The National Lottery Community Fund, said:
“We’ve met the team on several occasions and had the opportunity to talk to service users and witness the transformational work they deliver.
“The group are a real asset to the community and will no doubt continue to have meaningful impacts and support disenfranchised young men from the local area.”
Men Changing Lives was launched back in November 2020 through a unique pilot programme with HMPPS to support men who had just left prison, and thanks to such positive feedback, the men who had trialed this scheme had such positive comments the programme was piloted as a weekly drop-in group session. From here MCL has grown and has recently just received funding from The National Lottery Community Fund to continue the work they do to improve men’s mental health.
People who are interested in finding out more about Men Changing Lives can drop-in to St Vincent’s Ely which is based on Mill Road, where they can take a look around the centre and see what happens. Or they can sign-up to the 12-week programme straight away by contacting the centre directly on 07500170764 or being emailing Nathan on NathanH@svp.org.uk.