Of the individuals Amicus Trust support approx. 70% report mental health issues (60% of these with clinical needs) and 35% with drug and alcohol issues (Based on research on Bedford clients) Many are also trying to manage traumatic life events, Violence and neglect from parents, Domestic Violence, Sexual abuse as a child, rape as an adult, and other types of violence and life threatening situations.

In response to these needs, Amicus Trust have been pro-active in setting up Mental Health support across all regions, which has been critical especially during the pandemic. There is evidence that physical fitness, meaningful activities and hobbies will further support the mental health of those we support.
“Meaningful occupation & activities can give homeless people something positive to do with the aim of building their
self-esteem, developing their skills and building social networks away from the streets. Activities are also important
in in preventing the boredom that may lead people to turn back to the streets, or to alcohol / drugs.” Lemos&Crane.

Meaningful Occupation & Activities.
Many of the projects have been really proactive in setting up these kinds of activities with walking clubs, gardening
projects and coffee mornings, which have been greatly enjoyed by the service users. We would love to grow further
initiatives of this kind, and will work towards securing funding to support any ideas or activities that engage the service users.
“No matter how much support individuals have, individuals cannot improve their mental health sitting alone in
their room, they need to engage with others, build positive habits & relationships to replace negative ones” Adrian
Henson, Amicus Trust Mental Health Lead.

So far the project has seen the installation of on-site gyms, gym membership, individual training, engagement with the Frank Bruno Centre and the MK Dons, cookery days, gardening projects and bonding activities such as go-karting.

We were recently successful in securing funding for a number of our regions and would like to say thank you to the following Trusts and Foundations for supporting our activities projects. Thank you to ...