‘Zumbathon’ Raises Over £370 for Salford Mental Health Charity

A Zumba class has raised £377.19 for a Salford mental health charity after completing a ‘Zumbathon’.

A total of 23 people took part in the event, which was raising money for Mind in Salford, a charity that provides advocacy, advice and mindfulness sessions for people who live and work in Salford.

Three instructors led the 90 minute session, twice the length of a normal class, at Swinton Masonic Hall on Friday 30 November.

The Zumbathon was organised by one of the instructors, Laura Lindsay, who has had anxiety and depression.

Mrs Lindsay said: “I just wanted to raise as much money as possible for them so they can pay for counsellors, so people who are struggling know there is someone there they can phone.

“They’re there to offer support and advice.”

T-shirts were worn by some of the participants displaying the logo of the charity, which is based at the Angel Centre on St Philip’s Place, Salford,

Lawrence Caygill, 40, Fundraising and Business Development manager for Mind in Salford, said: “[£377.19) would cover the cost of a mental health awareness course for 30 people, giving them the skills and confidence to support someone who is struggling with their mental health.

“It would be an ideal thing that we would hope to do and that’s training community members to support each other.”

The charity helped 2274 people in 2017 and Mr Caygill says that has increased in 2018, although the official number is yet to be confirmed.

He added: “Events like the Zumbathon are massively massively important to the charity.

“It just means we can support more people with the various different things that we do.”

Debra Magid, a British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) Counsellor in Salford, said: “The need for mental health services has grown. There’s a lot of hype about mental health awareness so people feel more comfortable wanting to access the services.”

Mrs Magid went on to say: “The expectation is higher than it used to be.

“People aspire for greater things now and with that comes pressure and stress.”