South Devon surfers join nationwide paddle-out for mental health ahead of World Mental Health Day
The Wave Project gathered 34 of the nation’s surfers and surf lovers on Sunday 8th October to participate in a nationwide surf paddle-out for mental health, taking place to mark World Mental Health Day on Tuesday 10th October.
Paddlers and surfers from across the UK brought their surfboard or SUP to join one of the paddle-outs across the country, including in South Devon, where surfers met in the water on their boards, joined hands, and formed a human circle in support of mental health.
The Wave Project, the UK's leading surf therapy charity, led a local paddle out in South Devon, with 34 of its volunteers, supporters and young people who participate in its sessions taking part.
Katie Smith, South Devon Coordinator, The Wave Project, said: “Since The Wave Project started in Devon, we have helped over 1000 children with our six-week surf therapy courses, plus many more on private adaptive sessions. We want to continue to support more children, especially across a county where we are all aware of the pressures put upon education and mental health services."
“I hope raising awareness today will make people think about how we, as individuals, can make a change and work together to make sure children's mental health is top of the agenda.”
The Wave Project offers the world’s first surf therapy course to have been funded by a government health service. In 2018, it became the first charity in the world to offer ‘surfing on prescription’ via the NHS.
Starting as a small voluntary project in Cornwall in 2010, the charity now runs therapeutic surfing courses throughout the UK, supporting 2000+ young people a year with its vital surf therapy interventions across the UK, and has support from The Prince and Princess of Wales as well as Olympic cyclist Victoria Pendleton.
The service is evidence-based and has been evaluated under peer review, with research concluding that the service resulted in a significant and sustained increase in wellbeing among the young people studied.
The Wave Project provides a vital lifeline at a time of dire mental health statistics amongst young people: in 2022, over 1.4 million children were referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
During 2022, The Wave Project’s award-winning surf therapy programme supported over 2,000 young people experiencing anxiety or trauma, helping them to rebuild their self-confidence and improve their outlook on their lives, by combining the joy of surfing with the culture of support created by the charity’s surf mentors.
