The Prince of Wales comforted a businessman who came close to tears when discussing the invaluable support he receives from a mental health charity supporting rural communities.
William touched Paul Gannon's arm and told him “take your time” after he began to say Norfolk and Waveney Mind were “amazing” for their work in and around the royal Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
The future king visited Anmer Social Club, used by the charity and a stone’s throw from his Anmer Hall home, to learn about the progress of a two-year pilot started last year by Norfolk and Waveney Mind.
Co-funded by William and Kate, it aims to build on the work of Mind in the local area and further support the mental health of those working on the King’s Sandringham estate and the wider community.
Mr Gannon was given time to compose himself by the prince, who spoke about the origins of his support for the project: “What I noticed was there was a lot of isolation going on, people were stopping me and talking to me about it, and I felt that was a bit of a nod to say ‘well, can you do something about it?’.
“And this is a bit of pilot project to understand what’s the need, what’s the challenges in the rural community and how do we replicate something like this across the whole of the UK, so we’re not leaving holes in how we look after people.”
Since the pilot began around 800 people have been seen and early feedback suggests the choice of venues for the group sessions has been particularly effective, like Anmer Social Club, which is a welcoming community hub and new friendship networks have been built between those attending.
Mr Gannon, who has been supported by Mind for around four years, told William: “My experience is that Mind have become a sort of family. I’m very isolated up here, my family are elsewhere and, yes, they’ve been very useful.
“I’ve had PTSD issues which have really come back to haunt me and it’s good to be able to talk, not just go on to anti-depressants and things like that, to actually (talk) to real people, caring people and people you trust.”
When William asked what is the “ingredient” that attracts men into a group of their peers, Mark Back, who runs Mind’s group for men in the local area, replied: “I wish I knew the answer.
“Once we can get a man through the door and he gets to see us and the way we interact they tend to come back, there tends to be good progress, relationships form.”
He added that the younger generation’s willingness to talk about their psychological wellbeing appears to be influencing older relatives to talk.
The prince also chatted to a group supported by Norfolk and Waveney Mind who take part in exercise sessions for menopausal women and joked about their use of hula-hoops.
