Mental health services for men to be implemented at some local repair garages
It’s after new research has found 74 per cent of men haven’t received the help they need
Men in need of mental health support could access a helpline at local repair garages.
Insurance company, LV and the charity Family Action are working together on the scheme – after they revealed that seventy-four per cent of men haven’t received the help they need.
The initiative will provide employees and customers direct, confidential access to someone to talk to via specially designed Family Action phones, installed in many of the insurer's garages up and down the country.
Phones will direct users to Family Action's FamilyLine service, a helpline which offers free, support and guidance for adult family members by text, phone, web chat and email. Callers can also be referred to additional services which include counselling, coaching and befriending.
The scheme has been launched in garages - where around 90% of the workforce is men - as a means of helping them talk about their problems.
Research finds 4 in 5 men are hiding their problems from their closest
Ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, new research from LV= General Insurance (LV= GI) and its charity partner Family Action reveals as many as 4 in 5 men are hiding their problems from their nearest and dearest.
The research has shown that, due to the cost of living crisis, 2 in 5 men are feeling the pressures of family life like never before.
According to research, this year, almost half of men have needed support and 74% have not received help they needed. 1 in 5 men didn’t know where to turn when they needed help and support with their problems.
20% felt too embarrassed to ask and 17% thought no one would care.
Worryingly, mental health and financial worries were listed as the problems men are most likely to keep to themselves and not share.
The research also shines a light on how society's preconceptions around male behaviour impacts how they talk about their problems. Over 1 in 5 of men still think showing emotion is a sign of weakness, while a similar amount have been told to 'man-up' in the face of adversity.
Research finds what holds men back when asking for help?
When asked about what holds them back when asking for help, the top factors amongst men were:
- Struggling to admit I need help - 33%
- Needing to be strong for my family - 28%
- Ignore the problem in the hope it goes away - 28%
- Ashamed to be having problems - 23%
- Ashamed to be having problems - 23%
Breaking down barriers and stigma
Heather Smith, Managing Director at LV= General Insurance comments: "We've seen from our research that men are much less likely to reach out for help, and the data from FamilyLine shows this. However, we must look to break down the barriers and stigma so that men feel it's OK to reach out when they need to. We felt by providing easy, direct access to FamilyLine in our LV= garages, where our people are predominately male and where our customers come to see us, will help encourage more men to seek help when they need it and talk."
Ayse Hassan, Head of Helpline at Family Action, said: "Clearly the current cost-of-living crisis has put even more pressure on families who were already vulnerable. FamilyLine has seen a steady rise in the number of calls in the last 12 months, with a 30% increase in contacts in 2021 compared with the year before.”
"Our helpline volunteers provide a listening ear for those in need, offering support and guidance as well as signposting callers to other specialist support service, and we're proud to be able to partner with LV= to encourage more men to access help."
Emmett Fleming-McGowan, a former facilitator of mental health group Andy’s Man Club in Keighley says “Its embedded into us and you do get older and with men in sport and other areas at work, you feel as thought you’ve got to be tough and get on with it”
He adds: “The cliché of a garage is a manly environment with tough blokes that fix cars but this is a place where you can open up to other men”
For more information please visit: FamilyLine - Family Action