When we asked people who use the Community Support Team (CST) service how they felt about the support they'd received, here are some of their responses “Very happy about it. It's given me back a life. It has helped to understand myself. If it wasn’t for Touchstone I think I would have gone back, its given me back my get up and go” “Champion! I’ve got a lot from the service,
The following is a testimony from an individual using Touchstone’s Peer Led Brokerage Service. This person has a diagnosis of Schizoaffective disorder, anxiety and suspicious personality which has resulted in being sectioned and detained numerous occasions for long periods of time since 2000. The state of her accommodation was highlighted as one of her Psychosocial stresses and relapse indicators. The referral to Touchstone asked us to help source carpets for
I have been having problems with depression and anxiety for as long as I can remember, it was at a point where it was getting close to me not being able to go to work. I mentioned it to my doctor and he mentioned you can refer to the IAPT service. I had already attended some sessions of another type of therapy called 'Guided Self Help' in a different service.
For Mental Health Awareness Week on 8th to 14th May, John Halsall from the Community Development Service has written the third in a series of data blogs. This one looks at the findings from a national survey of mental health. Do take a few minutes to find out what the survey uncovered. In September 2016, NHS Digital published a national survey of mental health problems and treatment, the Adult Psychiatric
Business Development can seem like a slippery concept, with many people interpreting what it means in many different ways. Not only this, but it’s a term that refers to quite different things, depending on the context and sector in which it’s being used .At Touchstone it refers to a wide ranging of activities, conversations and thoughts ranging from strategic to the practical. One of the things the Business Development team
Arfan Hanif, Quality and Performance Director, on the importance of social conscience in our work and outlook. You may already know that Touchstone came 8th overall (including a Special Award for 'Developing Potential) in the 2017 'Best Companies - 100 Best Not-For-Profit organisations to work for' list. An incredible achievement considering our humble beginnings 35 years ago. Whilst things like' leadership', 'personal growth' and 'my team' are headlined by the
Touchstone Operations Director Arfan Hanif reflects on the value of collaboration and how to do it well. Increasingly everything we do at Touchstone is done in collaboration, whether between colleagues in the same office or with those who work for a number of our diverse partner organisations. If I did a quick count I could easily name over 50 partners we work with. In fact we are very good at
The Positive Care Programme first ran in 2004 – providing support and learning for people with long term health conditions. The Programme introduces people to activities and therapies that can become part of their daily toolkit for living life and managing their condition. Since the programme is aimed specifically at people who would not normally be able to afford the therapies and group activities on offer, it depends on external
Touchstone Business Development Team A Journey in Coproduction (Part 1) Working Together for Equality Resource Pack A few weeks ago I attended ‘News For You’ – Touchstone’s Service User Forum. A room filled with around 20 service users, each an expert in their own right, it was wonderful, and a privilege to see how the group runs. They rotate the chair/minute taker each month, and run through the
As part of LGBT History Month, Touchstone is profiling a famous LGBT person a week on our website . This week, we are celebrating the boxer, Leeds loiner and bisexual woman, Nicola Adams. Nicola Adams, MBE (born 26 October 1982) is a British boxer and the first woman to win an Olympic boxing title. The Gold Medal winner at the 2012 Summer Olympics held in London, as of 2015