A NEW wellbeing hub has opened in Braintree town centre to help residents get mental health support.
Gemma Griffin has launched A Place To Be You, for the community to “come together to enjoy mindful activities”, as well as get mental health support.
Mental health worker and Eastlight resident Gemma noticed people in Braintree only got the support they desperately needed when they reached crisis point.
In June 2022, Gemma successfully applied to join All In, Eastlight’s community programme where teams get a year to create a solution to a big issue impacting their community.
Gemma and a team of Braintree residents spent a year creating a programme offering community-based activities which help people manage their mental wellbeing.
Now, with further support and funding from Eastlight, Gemma has opened A Place To Be You.
She said: “We are a safe non-judgemental place where the Braintree community can come together to enjoy mindful activities as well as getting the mental health support they need.
“I offer a daily drop-in service where you can come in and unload your thoughts, get a coffee or be signposted to other local services.
“We have a snug where you can come and relax if life's getting a bit too much and there is also the opportunity to get some holistic therapy from Emma next door who owns Intuition Therapies.
“I want people to know that they’re not alone and they can come to us whenever they need to.
“We work together to offer a full package to really look after your mental wellbeing.
“We can also offer support and guidance through various ways and can signpost people to other support networks if we don’t have the answers ourselves.
“We are 100 per cent A Place To Be You.”
Gemma opened the hub a few weeks ago and has seen “overwhelmingly positive support”.
“I’ve had more than 100 people come through the doors in just weeks”, she said.
“I wasn't expecting to get this much support from the community so quickly.”
A Place To Be You is open at 2a Corner House, Fairfield Road, from 10am to 4pm from Monday to Friday.
Visit the Facebook page for daily updates as well as and there is a weekly agenda detailing upcoming activities.
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