Mid and North East Essex Mind Impact Report 2024/2025

Mid and North East Essex Mind is an independent local Mind charity serving communities from Chelmsford to Clacton. In 2024/25 its two Sanctuary services supported 4,624 people in crisis outside normal hours, the Employment Advice Service helped 130+ people secure new jobs, and 1,085 people completed Mental Health Toolkit training. The year's headline achievement was winning a National Mind Excellence Award for its Voices for a Brighter Future lived experience panel, and launching the new North East Essex Sanctuary service across Colchester and Clacton. Total income was £2.35 million.

Report snapshot
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📋About

Mid Essex Sanctuary (year-round crisis support outside normal hours); North East Essex Sanctuary (Colchester and Clacton, 10am–11pm daily, launched October 2024); NHS IAPT counselling (137 hours/week); fee-paying and low-cost counselling; Children & Young People counselling in secondary schools; Employment Advice Service (in partnership with Therapy for You); Support Time and Recovery Service (STaRS); Personality Disorder Support Service; Youthful Wellbeing (ages 18-25); Welcome Cafés (Brightlingsea, Chelmsford, Clacton, Colchester, Harwich); Self-Harm Management Toolkit training for professionals; Mental Health Toolkit workplace training; Walking for Wellbeing groups; Voices for a Brighter Future lived experience panel Custom geography from upload: Mid and North East Essex, UK (Chelmsford, Colchester, Clacton, Braintree, Maldon, Harwich, Brightlingsea)

📊Key Metrics

2,702 people supported through Mid Essex Sanctuary; 1,922 people supported through North East Essex Sanctuary/Crisis Café; 4,989 counselling sessions delivered to 889 referrals Key Metric 1
683 people supported through Employment Advice Service (130+ secured new jobs, 120 returned to work); 1,037 adults supported through STaRS; 1,085 people attended Mental Health Toolkit training across 59 sessions Key Metric 2
£2,347,461 total income (deficit of £183,283 following expiry of two major contracts); 253 professionals trained through Self-Harm Management Toolkit; 522 CYP counselling sessions in schools; National Mind Excellence Award for Voices for a Brighter Future lived experience panel Key Metric 3

Key Outcomes

  • 99% of Self-Harm Management Toolkit attendees rated trainers as good or very good; Mental Health Toolkit NPS of 86 (world class threshold is 70); 96% of colleagues say their work makes a difference; 100% of staff proud to work at the organisation
  • National Mind Excellence Award for Voices for a Brighter Future panel; received Mind Quality Mark; signed first Essex Mind Partnership agreement with neighbouring local Minds; 'You Got This Movement' campaign featured on ITV Anglia
  • New North East Essex Sanctuary launched October 2024; CYP counselling launched at Ormiston Rivers Academy (Burnham-on-Crouch) and Plume Academy (Maldon); new Essex Mind Partnership formed; Bereaved by Suicide and Hospital Link Worker services commencing in 2025/26

📍Geography

Other

2025 Enhanced

Annual Review April 2024 to March 2025

Social care services provided to thousands of people with learning disabilities; information and advice service caseloads growing in complexity; financial resilience rebuilt ahead of NI cost pressures
Key Metric 1
Omaze Yorkshire House Draw partnership raised £3.9m in 6 weeks with Jodie Whittaker as ambassador; awareness of people with learning disability significantly boosted through campaign
Key Metric 2
Voices Council (led by people with learning disabilities) challenged decisions on service handbacks, agency staffing and benefits access; new strategy to 2030 under development; new CEO Jon Sparkes OBE joined June 2024
Key Metric 3
Rebuilt financial resilience ahead of NI cost increases — 'more fortunate than many in the sector'; 80th anniversary approaching; new CEO appointed to lead strategy development
2024 Enhanced

Annual Report and Accounts 2024

518 new guide dog partnerships created in 2024 — 10% increase beating projections; 1,379 new puppies from breeding programme; 400th buddy dog partnership matched
Key Metric 1
17,500+ volunteers giving 12 million+ volunteer hours collectively; 2,400+ volunteers looked after dogs; 7,000+ training sessions on tech, travel and life skills delivered by Vision Rehabilitation Specialists
Key Metric 2
£47m raised through Sponsor a Puppy; £3.1m from raffles; £8.3m increased income from gifts in Wills; 3.45 million clicks to digital information and advice content; 5,900 visits to new Tech Selector assistive tech review tool
Key Metric 3
1,864 children and family members attended My Time to Play sessions; 6,852 large-print books delivered; 5,991 habilitation sessions completed to help children learn essential skills; 432,817 online learners accessing digital content
2025 Enhanced

Annual Report 2024-25

202,694 people supported across 270 locations; 74,070 in drug and alcohol; 102,531 in mental health; 1,035 in learning disability; turnover £191.9m
Key Metric 1
96% of regulated services rated Good or Outstanding by CQC; 12,456 naloxone kits dispensed (5.6% increase); 11,405 Hepatitis C tests (59% increase); 7,448 FibroScans (300% increase)
Key Metric 2
234 peer mentors; 82 volunteers; 5,194 colleagues (60% with lived experience); £7.79m invested in local VCSE organisations; £131.87m social value from local employment
Key Metric 3
87% of people supported have overall positive experience; 90% feel safe; 774/1,063 (72%) in Birmingham social prescribing service achieved goals across health, community, emotional and employment domains; new Lincolnshire Recovery Partnership reached over 160 staff in year one