Box in Mind project closing in on launch after successful pilot

The first pilot workshop of England Boxing’s Box in Mind project – which aim to increase awareness of mental health issues within the sport – has taken place in London ahead of its expected roll-out across the country.

It gave delivers the opportunity to test the content in front of a live audience and was very well received, generating lots of interesting and important debate.

A follow-up session was held with the mental health charity Mind to review the workshop and assess feedback.

It has ensured the content has been refined to provide sufficient balance between the giving of information and, most crucially, discussion-generating activities, to fit within the three-hour timeframe.

A second pilot is scheduled for the beginning of February, with the workshop materials also to be submitted to Mind so it can go through the process of becoming formally accredited as a Mind and England Boxing partner workshop.

Box In Mind tutors

Once the workshop is accredited, England Boxing will begin tutor recruitment by looking to recruit and train a small team.

Tutors will need to be experienced facilitators that are skilled in managing potentially challenging discussion and debate around mental health within a workshop setting.

They will need to have lived experience of dealing with mental health problems to ensure they have a level of understanding required.

Wider Box In Mind work

Box In Mind is more than a workshop – it is England Boxing’s programme to address mental health within the sport and the workshop is only one element.

Other areas of work under development for 2019 include:

• A campaign on Time to Talk Day, Thursday 7^th February 2019, to get people talking about mental health in boxing.
• Building a network of volunteer ‘Box In Mind Champions’ in boxing clubs, who will raise awareness of mental health within their clubs, helping people that may be struggling to see that help is available and that they don’t have to fight alone.
• A campaign, modelled on Time to Change, that will use the personal lived experience of mental health problems of England Boxing members to raise awareness, inspire others and normalise conversations around mental health in boxing.

Matthew Williams, England Boxing’s Club Support Officer for the North East who is leading the Box in Mind Project, said: “I am very proud to be doing this important work and strongly believe that together we will make a real difference to many people in our sport that are currently suffering in silence.”

If you have any questions, or would like to discuss Box In Mind further, please get in touch with Matthew on 07515 333032 or by emailing mailto:matthew.williams@www.englandboxing.org.