Local mental health services for all in rural Lincs. The dark winter months are known to be some of the toughest for people struggling with mental health issues. Living in rural communities can sometimes make it feel even tougher, but LPFT and its partners are here to help you, wherever you live in rural Lincolnshire. Innovative new services are available for residents, connecting you to help wherever and whenever you need it. Lincolnshire’s Night Light Cafés, for example, are proving popular and being held up as examples of best practice in local mental health service delivery.

Night Light Cafés are safe spaces that offer an out-of-hours, non-clinical support service and are staffed by teams of trained volunteers available to listen. They also provide signposting advice and information on other organisations that can help with specific needs, such as debt advice or emergency food parcels.

Night Light Cafés are funded by NHS England and Improvements as an integral part of the Lincolnshire Mental Health Transformation Programme, which is committed to improving mental health and wellbeing by creating opportunities for people to thrive in connected communities.  

It’s free to go to a Night Light Café; people should call or send a quick message to book in advance, to make sure someone is available to listen and help.

People can self-refer by calling 0300 011 1200 or via Instagram DM or Facebook Messenger @NightLightCafeLincoln.

"The power of making connections and having conversations is huge,” explains community connector Mike Farley from Bridge Central and Bridge Night Light Café in Lincoln. “It makes such a difference to people having a purpose, taking part in a shared activity and building confidence.

“We’ve seen it so many times here. For example, a few months ago, a young lady started to visit the Night Light Café at Bridge. She was lonely and isolated. Over a period of a few months, she tried new activities, made friends, and built a new support network in the local community. Now, she is confident and has a job in Lincoln. It’s wonderful to see the transformation.”

All of the available help, support and activities in your area (including Night Light Cafes) are now searchable in one easy to use free resource – HAY Lincolnshire (How Are You?) Lincolnshire.

Victoria Sleight, Head of Community Mental Health Transformation at Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, commented:

“Common questions residents ask, are: How can I connect with others in my local community? What sort of things should I do?

“We’re here to help and support people, so they can find opportunities or groups which are right for them. The new online resource haylincolnshire.co.uk helps do just that.

“We’ve worked with partners from local councils, the voluntary sector, and some of our Experts by Experience to develop a mental health and wellbeing specific website. Community connectors like Mike from across the county will be working with us to continually share and update the information on it, so it will have a wealth of really valuable local support.”

 Visit www.haylincolnshire.co.uk  to find out more.