News & Events

LGBTQ POC Peer Support Group

By editor | 10/12/2020

We are very excited to announce our new Peer Support Group for LGBTQ People of Colour will be starting in February 2021. The group will be facilitated by Yasmin Kapadia and will run via Zoom. The group will run for 90 minutes on Wednesday afternoons from February for 18 weeks. This will be online via … Read more

MindOut logo, large rainbow flower, and the words Annual Report 2019-2020

MindOut Celebration Event 2020

By editor | 18/11/2020

Our Annual Celebration Event 2020 looks a little different this year! Check out the video as we reflect on the last year of MindOut’s achievements. We are also thrilled to present you with our Annual Report 2019-2020. Have a look and see what we’ve been up to.

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Trans awareness and trans remembrance

By editor | 17/11/2020

One of the most urgent and critical mental health issues in LGBTQ communities is the rate and intensity of suicidal distress for trans and non-binary people. 21 years ago we started offering mental health advocacy support to LGBTQ people. One of our first clients was Sarah. She came to us in crisis, extremely distressed. Sarah … Read more

Peer Support Groups open for new members

By editor | 12/10/2020

Managing our mental health and wellbeing can be challenging and at times isolating.  MindOut offers friendly, supportive groups for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer people, where you can share your experiences, talk about how you manage and find out what helps others. Our Peer Support Groups offer spaces to meet and connect with other … Read more

Talking About Mental Health For All

By editor | 08/10/2020

The World Mental Health Day, the theme is ‘Mental Health For All’. In this video, MindOut’s Kate and Kitty discuss LGBTQ mental health, as well as talking about why LGBTQ specific services are so crucial and why MindOut’s services work.

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Getting to know the MindOut counselling service with Emmie Prosper

By editor | 24/09/2020

What course are you studying at the moment and why did you choose this discipline? I’m studying an MA in Gestalt Therapy Theory Studies. I chose this is because prior to training as a psychotherapist I qualified as an executive coach. The programme director was a Gestalt therapist so it was largely down to her … Read more

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Spotlight on our telephone befriending and online peer mentoring services!

By editor | 24/09/2020

Telephone befriending: Many of us feel lonely or isolated. Sometimes we can find ourselves without someone to spend time with or share news with or talk to about our lives. Sometimes we don’t feel connected to our communities or to people like us, with our LGBTQ identity. Our telephone befriending project offers opportunities for people … Read more

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“Volunteering at MindOut was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, to give back to my community in this way.” – Lucy Kamper

By editor | 21/09/2020

I started volunteering for MindOut when a trans friend sadly took her own life in 2018. I volunteered in one of the groups and also as a peer mentor. It was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life to give back to my community in this way. Through the amazing training offered by MindOut and … Read more

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Why is Bisexuality Awareness Week so important? – by Dominic Arnall, Chair of MindOut

By editor | 18/09/2020

Most LGBTQ people I know are pretty good at reading signals. If you’ve grown up experiencing a level of discrimination or prejudice growing up, it becomes second-nature to risk-assess your environment before revealing something about yourself that could put you in danger. Or at very least, make things awkward. Some same-sex couples will get used … Read more

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Counsellor, Adam, celebrates volunteering with MindOut

By editor | 03/09/2020

MindOut have been a fundamental part of my growth as a counsellor, because I joined them right at the start of my training, just as they were opening the counselling service. The first thing to say on a personal level was – and this was mind-blowing to me – MindOut actually wanted me to join … Read more

Assertiveness Skills Workshop for LGBTQ people over 50

2-3.30pm Thursday 4th March 2021 Trainer: Karen Dresback In the second of our series of self-advocacy workshops for LGBTQ people over 50, we will be focussing on Assertiveness. Assertiveness is a key skill in being able to self-advocate and is important in getting our voices heard effectively. In this workshop we will be looking at: ... Read more
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Introducing Georgios: Administrator

When did you start working at MindOut? A little over two years ago.   What pronouns do you use? Them/they   Explain your job in 10 words? Behind the scenes support and first contact for client enquiries.   What do you love about your role? I enjoy that admin is often the go-to for troubleshooting ... Read more
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New Peer Support Groups are open for new members

Managing our mental health and wellbeing can be challenging and at times isolating.  MindOut offers friendly, supportive groups for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer people, where you can share your experiences, talk about how you manage and find out what helps others. Our Peer Support Groups offer spaces to meet and connect with other ... Read more
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Quality Performance Mark Award Logo

MindOut’s Advocacy Service has recieved the Advocacy Quality Performance Mark (QPM)

We’re really proud that our Advocacy service has been awarded the Advocacy Quality Performance Mark (QPM) from the National Development Team for Inclusion (NDTi). The QPM is the UK’s only independent quality performance mark for organisations offering independent advocacy.  This award recognises and promotes good policy and practice with the aim of enabling all people to ... Read more
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LGBTQ Over-50s Advocacy Workshops

Facilitators: Karen Dresback, 50+ Project Advocacy Worker and Dawn Hayes, 50+Project Leader We’re excited to be offering a series of Advocacy workshops for LGBTQ people aged over 50, starting on January 28th. These workshops will cover a range of topics and are available to any LGBTQ people who identify as LGBTQ, as well as any ... Read more
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Chatting with Karen Dresback, LGBTQ Advocacy Worker

What is your role at MindOut? I am an advocate and the member of the team who leads and takes on the majority of housing and over-50s cases. I help to link people in with housing services and make housing applications and transfer requests. I also put people in touch with other support services. For ... Read more
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Meet Yasmin, our LGBTQ PoC group worker

Yasmin Kapadia has facilitated a number of peer support groups for MindOut including one for BAME service users. We are very happy that she will be facilitating our LGBTQ PoC peer support group starting in February. She also runs a private practice as an Integrative Transpersonal counsellor and works as a mental health mentor at ... Read more
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Online and Telephone Counselling Works!

When we first went into lockdown in March, MindOut moved quickly to offer online and telephone sessions to our existing clients, so that they could complete their counselling. This soon led to us offering remote sessions to new clients. Uptake was slow in the beginning, both clients and counsellors alike had concerns about the effectiveness ... Read more
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MindOut’s 12 Days of Winter Wellbeing

The festive season can be a difficult time of year for LGBTQ individuals and this Christmas is likely to be particularly isolating due to the pandemic.  You might be feeling lonely or you may be enduring an uncomfortable Christmas bubble with family. Here are MindOut’s top tips for staying mentally well this winter. Day 1. ... Read more
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