The CDWs have developed an innovative scheme to encourage young BME men to talk about their mental health. The team has set up a new magazine, Barbershop, which features mental-health focused comic strips, artwork and poetry. Local young BME men contribute and the magazine is circulated to others via local barbershops.

Pearly Gupta, one of the participating CDWs, says: “Our focus is on prevention and on helping people before they reach a critical stage. You need to empower people to recognise mental illness. Barbershop is about giving people that knowledge base and signposting them to services if there’s a need. We’ve found that young BME men trust their barbers and will talk to them about many aspects of their lives – this is an effective way to get people talking about mental health and emotional wellbeing.”