Hundreds of Elves come together for Mental Elf 2022!

Held at Witton Park in Blackburn, teams of colleagues, friends and family laced up their running shoes to raise over £10,000 for Lancashire Mind and the vital services they deliver within the county’s workplaces, schools and community groups.


Supporters took part in not one but three Mental Elf fun runs including a mini 2K for children under 15 years, a 5k and 10k – accompanied by a live samba band, salsa music, free arts and crafts activities, story telling and face painting.


Tommy McIlravey, CEO of Lancashire Mind, said: “Mental Elf is a fantastic opportunity for families, friends and colleagues to have fun together whilst raising awareness for a very important issue – the importance of looking our own, after each other’s, wellbeing and mental health.

“After a difficult few years and ahead of a challenging winter, it is wonderful to see so many people championing positive mental health and supporting Lancashire Mind. Every penny we raise stays within our county boundaries and helps to deliver essential mental health support such as resilience workshops for young people, tailored workplace wellbeing training, employment and housing services and financial wellbeing support.”

We have seen a significant increase in demand for support since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

As an independent charity, support from corporate partnerships and fundraising events are essential and with 1 in 4 people now experiencing poor mental health, every penny counts.
 
Tommy added: “More than ever, mental health really does matter. We want people to know that they are not alone and that is it important to discuss wellbeing and mental health openly at home, with friends and at work.

“A huge thank you to everyone who has made today possible including our generous sponsors SPAR wholesaler, James Hall & Co. Ltd.; Pierce Business Advisory & Accountancy Group; Essential Industrial Services Ltd. Webbox, and Concert Homes – our amazing volunteers and dedicated runners.”

Thank you to: 

Booths for providing refreshments for volunteers, Tesco Chorley for providing bottles of water for the goody bags, Webbox for providing the best dressed pet prize, Counselling Kind for providing the biggest smile prize, Morrisons Chorley for providing the best dressed elf prize, Becky Gilbert-Rule for face painting, Sue Allonby for story telling, Worldwise Samba Band for performing, Solar Salsa for performing , Ferris Dance Company for performing, Ak Active for the warm ups, Elements Day Spa for the complimentary treatments, Hyndburn Police Cadets and Burnley Police Cadets for marshalling and all our volunteers for making the event possible! 

If you would like to fundraise for Lancashire Mind or find out more about tailored corporate training programmes, contact [email protected]