RETIRED fireman Roly Duke has spoken out about the the importance of maintaining a healthy mental wellbeing.
Roly, the driving force behind the Redditch Sheds project, has been busy supporting Public Health England’s new mental health campaign Every Mind Matters.
It looks to encourage adults to look after their mental wellbeing as much as their physical health and highlights the actions people can take to prevent serious problems.
Roly said: “Even though I loved being a fireman, it was a very stressful job.
“It’s important to not take the pressures of the job back into your own private life.”
Roly used to manage his mental health by doing a spot of plumbing which he says helped him unwind.
“People need to realise there are things we can do to help manage problems to prevent them getting worse,” he said.
When Roly retired in 2015 he wanted to do something useful with his time to help people who might be feeling stressed, isolated or lonely.
“I set up the Redditch Community Sheds in Febuary 2017 initially with the support from Age UK.
“It gained charitable status in April 2018 and now there are 12 regular members who visit around twice a week, aged from 40s to late 70s.
“I hope more people will start to realise mental health is something we all need to take care of every day.”
To access the Every Mind Matters digital platform, including expert-led videos, and create your own action plan to help look after your mental health, visit www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters or type ‘Every Mind Matters’ into the Facebook search bar.
