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The annual IHE Awards celebrate the innovation and excellent practice taking place in independent providers, recognising the quality and breadth of IHE member activity across nine different categories. The awards also recognise members’ outstanding contribution to the IHE community at both a provider and individual level. IHE provider award
Futureworks have this year been awarded Outstanding Contribution to the IHE Community (Provider)
This award recognises IHE members who demonstrate commitment to the IHE community and take an active role in supporting our work as a representative body.
Futureworks took part in the Many Hands project. A collaborative approach by small-setting, independent, higher education providers to student mental health solutions.
A group of small, independent, higher education providers developed a unique cross-provider peer mentoring programme. It aimed to offer easily accessible, flexible, and discreet wellbeing support to mature, creative, and Black, Asian and minority ethnic students.
This project was funded as part of the Mental Health Funding Programme: Using innovation and intersectional approaches to target mental health support for students.
The project aimed to provide an additional wellbeing service to students. It facilitated early intervention and prevention of poor mental health, with a view to improved positive practical outcomes. The focus was the development and testing of an online peer mentoring service allowing students from partner institutions across England to access wellbeing support easily and discreetly from a centralised pool of trained fellow students with a wide variety of lived experience. It targeted mature, creative, and Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) students, considering intersectionality of characteristics. IHE provider award
Futureworks Principal Chris Mayo, and Vice Principal Ben Norris were there to collect the award on the night.
“Participating in the Many Hands project was an enriching experience for everyone involved, including our cohort of trained students”, said Chris Mayo, “It’s an innovative and collaborative approach that supported student metal health within small-setting independent higher education establishments, and we are very proud to have been given this award”.
The Many Hands Project
Participating in the Many Hands project has been an enriching experience. It embodies a collaborative and innovative approach to addressing student mental health within small-setting, independent higher education institutions. This initiative brings together a diverse group of educators, administrators, and mental health professionals. It fostered a sense of community and shared responsibility. Through the Many Hands project, we collectively explores and implemented tailored solutions that prioritized the unique needs of our students.
The emphasis on student mental health is not just a goal but a shared mission across the Education Sector. We are so proud to put the mental health of our students at the forefront and provide as much support and guidance to them all.
Read the full article on the OfS website and take a look around the Many Hands website. To see how Futureworks supports our students with their mental health, see the Student Support page.