Annual Report

2015–16 was our second full year of delivering the combined IMHA (Independent Mental Health Advocacy) and community advocacy contract and having successfully secured additional funding we have been able to enhance our team and our service offer. We have recruited a new full time community advocate and as a result we have brought down our waiting list and waiting times. The IMHA service continues to provide vital support to people detained in hospital and we have seen referral numbers in this team

SDS provides individuals with person-centred one-to-one specialist mental health support. Support is tailored, flexible and recovery focused. Support is delivered by experienced Mental Health Support Workers; we aim to deliver a culturally sensitive service which meets the needs of the communities in Leeds. We currently have a staff team of 12, working across the city, 7 days per week. We recently introduced a volunteer to the team who will further enhance the current support being offered and provide additional opportunities for our service

This has been another successful year for the Sikh Elders Service with growing numbers of elders joining in regular activities and trips. The service continues to advocate on behalf of elders via one-to-one support in accessing statutory services to enable them to live independently. Despite the challenging financial environment we are always actively looking for new growth opportunities to make the service sustainable. Our membership has grown by 200% over the last two years and we circulate 300 newsletters every quarter to our elders

A Touchstone Service for the Rehabilitation of South Asian Offenders working together with the National Probation Service and the Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC). What is Shafa? Shafa is a newly formed Touchstone project working across the whole of West Yorkshire. Shafa means renewal, restoration and healing in Urdu. Touchstone’s approach is to work with people who have offended from the South Asian community based on a recovery and strengths-based approach. Skilled and experienced staff will work with South Asian people who have committed

CST is an assertive outreach service, working with people over 18 who have complex mental health conditions who are excluded from other services or unable to access other services. CST work with service users primarily on a one-to-one basis. CST use a strengths-based recovery approach, which is a person-centred model with a focus on finding the strengths and interests of service users and working positively towards service user-set goals. There are some groups available to CST service users, run in conjunction with different partners, e.g.