Leading developer Barratt Homes is helping to connect the residents of St Ives, Cambridgeshire this weekend (1st February) with a ‘Meet the Street’ event at its development The Spires.
A typical street scene at The Spires in St Ives, Cambridgeshire
In a bid to inspire 50 streets around St Ives to host their own events, CALMtown and Barratt Homes is hosting a tea and coffee afternoon on Saturday to bring residents together and develop a community-led approach to mental health.
CALMtown began as a result of a premature death in the town of St Ives. This death, as with all, touched many lives and Reverend Matt Finch, already a member of CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), decided that St Ives would be the first CALMtown after a collaboration with Tim Drye, Mayor of St Ives and Phil Pope, a local pub landlord.
The objectives of the organisation are to empower people to build links to strengthen their community, raise awareness about wellbeing and mental health in the town and to act as a signpost to existing organisations, resources and services.
Reverend Finch said: “We are a very small organisation so we don’t have a charity number but are a part of an umbrella organisation called Hunts Forum that supports charitable organisations in the area.
“The ‘Meet the Street’ event at The Spires will be in a part of the town where we are gathering 10 new roads together for a big estate get-together on the field nearby.
“Being a new development, there are lots of people who don’t know each other and research suggest that one of the biggest contributions to poor mental health is loneliness, so this is a really simple idea to get to know our neighbours.”
Research by CALM suggests that suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 45 in the UK and construction workers are highlighted as the sector most at risk.[1]
Andrew Swindell, Managing Director at Barratt Homes Northampton, said: “As a leading housebuilder in the area, we are thrilled to be supporting and participating in such a worthy cause.
“We know that life can be challenging and we make sure all of our staff at Barratt Homes are looked after to ensure they are never alone. Participating in this event is a great way to show our customers that we care for them too.”
To find out more about CALMtown or find any events near you, please visit www.calmtown.org.
For more information about any of the Barratt Homes developments in the area, visit the website at www.barratthomes.co.uk or call the sales line on 033 3355 8481.
The Spires in St Ives, Cambridgeshire
[1] https://www.thecalmzone.net/2019/04/mental-health-world-cup-2019-in-support-of-calm/?highlight=construction