Lucinda Fraser, the outgoing High Sheriff of East Sussex has made mental health one of the central themes of her shrieval year. As the year progressed, one thing became apparent, and that was the lack of opportunities for charities working in this space to come together and share experiences however, The Big Conversation changed that.

On Tuesday 25 March, Lucinda took over the Rye Community Hub and invited charities, funders and stakeholders to spend a morning listening to each other’s stories and swapping contact details. The day was facilitated by Kim Richards from Rother Voluntary Action and Tracy Dighton from Citizens Advice 1066. One of the recurring themes was the impossible situation that many charities find themselves in with increased running costs and soaring demand at a time when statutory funding is being cut and trusts and foundations, like us, are unable to fill the gap.

As part of the agenda there was a panel discussion and one of the important topics explored was the need for us all to be braver about saying no. No is not a word that comes easily to those of us working in the third sector but sometimes we need to use it to protect our own mental health. No to clients demanding constant access. No to funders and commissioners setting impossible targets, and even no to employers and trustees expecting more for less.

Wellbeing is something we all talk about but with several CEOs in the room all talking about burnout and the need to prioritise their own mental health, it feels like now is the time to pause and reflect on how much we owe the amazing people who run these charities on which we are all so dependent.

Our Improving Health funding priority supports organisations that positively impact local people’s mental health and wellbeing, helping people to live longer, better lives. You can find out more here.