In this section you can read case studies from a range of different organisations within the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland.
The Parent Rooms
The Parent Rooms (formerly We Are Pangs) is a perinatal mental health charity based in Northern Ireland.
With 1 in 5* mothers struggling with a mental health concern in pregnancy and following the birth of a child such as depression, anxiety, OCD, and psychosis, and 1 in 10* fathers also struggling with their mental health either as a result of becoming a parent, or of supporting a partner through mental illness, The Parent Rooms support and advocate for the mental health of all parents throughout Northern Ireland.
The charity provides support for parents and their families as they emerge beyond personal struggles to lead full and healthy lives through the provision of peer support, wellness education and awareness raising in the community.
We chatted with Michelle Bradley, Chief Executive and founder of The Parent Rooms, to learn more about how they provide benefits to the public and the impact their work has on society in Northern Ireland. To read the conversation in full, click here.
*Statistics provided by The Parent Rooms
Causeway and Mid-Ulster Women's Aid
The purpose of Women’s Aid is to provide a quality based holistic service to women, children and young people affected by all forms of domestic and sexual violence; to educate, challenge and co-operate with external agencies and the wider community with a vision to eradicate domestic and sexual violence.
Women’s Aid believe that domestic and sexual violence is a pattern of deliberate, persistent and intentional behaviour used to exercise control and power by one person over another, which may take place over a prolonged period of time. While it is recognised that domestic and sexual violence can occur between other family members, in same sex relationships, and by women against male partners, Women’s Aid focuses on domestic violence where the violence is perpetrated by men towards women with whom they have, or have had, an intimate relationship. Research suggests that 1 in 4 women experience domestic and sexual violence at some point in their lives, and it accounts for 23% of reported violent crime.
We talked with Sharon Burnett, CEO of Causeway and Mid-Ulster Women's Aid to understand how their services and programmes benefit society in Northern Ireland, and in particular how they work with women and young children experiencing homelessness. Read more here.
Hope 4Life NI
Hope 4 Life NI is a mental health organisation based in Northern Ireland works to the ethos that that everyone has a right to good mental health and is committed to working for this right to become a reality for all.
While the UN acknowledges that globally only 7% of public funding is directed at mental health, with even less being directed towards early intervention, Hope 4Life NI believe that prevention is always better than cure. Their work and programmes aim to ensure that young people are provided with the education on what mental ill health is, what signs and indicators people should be on the lookout for, and what services are available to teach them the tools and techniques to better manage life’s challenges and help them navigate and overcome mental, social and emotional challenges prior to any need for crisis interventions.
We recently talked with Dee Nixon, Chief Executive at Hope 4 Life NI, about the organisations work, with specific focus on the campaigning and advocacy role that they play. You can read more here.
Young At Art
With the principal benefit of its work being the contribution to children and young people’s imaginative wellbeing, creativity and cultural access, we recently talked with Kelly Anne Collins, General Manager at Young at Art, about their role in providing benefit to society through the arts.
Young at Art aims to provide children and young people from all backgrounds with access to, and education in, arts and cultural activities. It promotes work of artistic value in different artforms, promotes international cultural exchange and supports local artists to develop their understanding and skills in working for and with children and young people.
Click here to read more.
Marie Curie NI
Providing frontline nursing and hospice care, Marie Curie is an end-of-life charity that offers a free support line and a wealth of information on all aspects of dying, death and bereavement.
In Northern Ireland, they provide home-based nursing across all five trusts and hospice services in the Belfast and South Eastern Trust. As well as policy and campaigning, they are the largest charitable funder of research to improve end of life care.
Craig Harrison, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at Marie Curie NI, talked to us about the work of the organisations and how they have made an impact on public policy recently through their lobbying and campaigning efforts. Read more here.