Salford Men’s Mental Health Commission Report
In the UK, men are three times more likely to die by suicide than women, with men between the ages of 40 and 49 having the highest suicide rates.
Through this project, the commission has learned about the stressors affecting Salford men and how they cope.
Physical activities, particularly exercise and spending time outdoors are effective coping strategies.
The importance of readily available information was highlighted, helping men to make decisions about the support they can find.
Community groups, which play a crucial role in providing support, said there are challenges in gaining funding.
The partners of these men also said they needed more support for themselves.
We have been delighted to facilitate the Salford Men’s Mental Health Commission which is such an important piece of work. It has laid out the very practical ways men in Salford can be helped to be mentally well. Poor mental health can have such a huge impact on people’s lives and we hope this report will be an important step forward in achieving real improvement.
Launched in September 2023, the commission was made up of local men, and was facilitated by Healthwatch Salford and funded by Salford City Council.
The commission asked men across the city for their views on their state of mind, the support currently available, and how that support might be improved to meet their needs.
Men from a wide range of backgrounds were invited to take part in the first stage of the commission and codesigned an engagement project, called Men in Mind Salford.
They created and ran a survey asking men in Salford for their views on mental health priorities, local services, and support networks; gathering information to help analyse and create a report with recommendations for NHS, council services, and voluntary groups.
