Mental health crisis Cornwall

In a crisis, or know someone in crisis? Need someone to talk to? We are here 24/7 to listen and determine how best to help. Call us free on 0800 038 5300.

Call 999 or go to the emergency department now if:

  • someone's life is at risk, for example they have seriously injured themselves or taken an overdose
  • you do not feel you can keep yourself or someone else safe

A mental health emergency will be taken as seriously as a physical one. You will not be wasting anyone's time. Call 999.

Get advice from 111 or ask for an urgent GP appointment if you need help urgently for your mental health, but it's not an emergency or you're not sure what to do. You may be able to speak to a nurse, or mental health nurse, over the phone. NHS 111 will tell you the right place to get help if you need to see someone. Use the NHS 111 online service, or call 111.

A GP can advise you about helpful treatments and help you access mental health services. You may be able to refer yourself to some services.

Resources for emotional and psychological wellbeing

There may be resources listed on this page that could be incorporated into your personal social prescription.

Alcohol, drugs and substance misuse

Frank

Talk to Frank for facts, support and advice on drugs and alcohol. Find a support centre or call 0300 123 6600.

We Are With You

We Are With You provide support to adults, children, young adults and older people to make positive behavioural changes in regard to alcohol, drugs, or mental health and wellbeing. Telephone 0333 200 0325 (available 24 hours).

Dementia

Age UK

Providing support and advice to older people, the Age UK website has a wealth of information as well as a dedicated phone line available 8am to 7pm. Call 0800 678 1602, lines are open 365 days a year.

Silver Line

The Silver Line is the only free confidential helpline providing information, friendship and advice to older people, open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. They can link callers to local groups and services as well as protect and support older people who are suffering abuse and neglect. Call 0800 470 8090.

Bereavement

Cornwall Bereavement Network

The Cornwall Bereavement Network website has a comprehensive directory of a wide range of bereavement support and services.

Cruse Bereavement Care

Cruse Bereavement Care supports people after the death of someone close, local individual and group support. Call 0808 808 1677.

Coping tools

Making a safety plan

A mental health safety plan is a preventative tool designed to help support those who struggle with mental wellbeing.

Togetherall

Togetherall is a safe, online community where people support each other anonymously to improve mental health and wellbeing. People aged 16 and above who have a postcode in Cornwall or the Isles of Scilly have free access to the 24/7 platform. Create a Togetherall account.

Debt

Breathing Space debt respite scheme

The scheme freezes payment demands and legal action by creditors while you get free debt advice. Call 0800 138 1111.

Citizens Advice Cornwall

Call 0344 411 1444.

Step to change charity

Call 0800 138 111 for free debt advice

Eating habits

BEAT UK

BEAT UK provides a wealth of resources for self-help, helplines, chatrooms and web chat. Call 0808 801 0677.

Cornwall Healthy Weight

Cornwall Healthy Weight provides support to eat healthily and exercise tips.

Rise Up app

Features a mood and food diary for those with eating disorders. Visit the Recovery Warriors website for more information.

Emotional support and someone to talk to

Anxiety UK

Anxiety UK's helpline provides friendly support and guidance on how to deal with anxiety, discuss techniques for immediate short-term relief of anxiety symptoms through to helping you find the right path of action for more long-term support. Call 0344 477 5774.

CALM

CALM (Campaign against living miserably) is for men who need support. Call 0800 58 58 58, 5pm to midnight.

LGBTQ

  • Call the LGBTQ community helpline on 0300 330 0630.
  • Call Mind Out on 01273 234 839.

Man Down

Man Down run peer support groups for men at 24 different locations across Cornwall. There is bound to be a group near you.

Men Shed

Offers fully equipped workshops where skilled and unskilled men can share time with each other and work on community projects. Find a Men Shed near you.

SANE line

SANE line is a national out-of-hours mental health helpline offering specialist emotional support, guidance, and information to anyone affected by mental illness every day of the year. Call 0300 304 7000, 4.30pm to 10.30pm, or leave a message on 07984 967 708 giving your first name and a contact number, You can also email the SANE line.

Survivors Trust

The Survivors Trust is a free, national helpline 7 days a week for people aged 16 or older who are survivors of rape or sexual abuse and violence 0808 801 0818.

Housing

Cornwall Council

Cornwall Council can help with council housing, homelessness, social housing as well as a range of other issues. If you have a question, use the form on the website or call 0300 1234 161.

Home Group

Support for housing, benefits, private rented, homelessness prevention and home choice. Also part of the Empowering Independence Outreach project supporting independent living for people with complex needs. Call the Gateway information line on 07710 709 527, Monday to Friday, 9am to midday.

Shelter

Shelter provide support with homelessness ,private renting tenancy deposits, repossession, eviction, repairs, benefits and council housing. Call 0808 800 4444, 8am to 8pm on weekdays and 9am to 5pm on weekends.

St Petrocs Nos Da Kernow

Focusing on trying to stop individuals becoming homeless in the first place. Support involves helping people to sustain tenancies or finding solutions to rent arrears issues. No First Night Out and No Second Night Out schemes which provide emergency accommodation for individuals who have just become homeless. Email St Petrocs Nos Da Kernow or call 01209 200 278, Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

Mental wellbeing online resources

Centre for Clinical Interventions

Centre for Clinical Interventions provides self-help guides and workbooks based on CBT.

Clear Fear

Clear Fear is an app that helps you to learn to reduce they physical responses to threat as well as challenging thoughts and behaviours and releasing emotions.

Living life to the full

Free online cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) course plus a wide range of other free recourses. Register for a free session CBT course.

MIND

The MIND website has a wealth of online resources, information and training materials to support your mental health.

Self-help anxiety management (SAM)

SAM is an app that can help you to understand what causes your anxiety, monitor your anxious thoughts and behaviour.

Woebot

Woebot uses tools from CBT to think through situations to reduce stress and challenges. This includes depression, anxiety, relationship problems, procrastination, loneliness, grief, pain management and more.

Free and NHS accredited apps

Search your phone's app store for:

  • Breathe
  • CBTI coach
  • Daylight cognitive therapy
  • Headspace
  • PTSD coach
  • Sleepio
  • Smiling Mind
  • Stop Breathe Think

Books

  • Overcoming depression: A self help guide using CBT by Paul Gilbert

YouTube videos

Search for Breathing and relaxation', ‘Progressive muscle relaxation’ or 'Guided meditations for relaxation and improved sleep'.

Neurodiversity

National Autistic Society

National Autistic Society provides support, information and practical advice for adults, children and families of autistic people.

Sunshine Support

Sunshine Support provide a range of educational resources and events including webinars talking about range of topics related to autism as well as broader topics.

Books

  • Be Different by John Robison
  • Been There. Done That. Try This!: An Aspie's Guide to Life on Earth by Tony Attwood
  • The Complete Guide to Asperger’s Syndrome by Dr Attwood
  • Explaining Humans by Camilla Pang
  • Fall Down Seven Times, Get Up Eight: A young man's voice from the silence of Autism by Naoki Higashida
  • The Independent Woman's Handbook for Super Safe Living on the Autistic Spectrum by Robyn Steward
  • The Reason Why I Jump by Naoki Higashida
  • The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
  • Sisterhood of the Spectrum: An Asperger Chick's Guide to Life by Jennifer Cook O’Toole
  • The Way I see it by Grandin and The Pattern Seekers by Baron-Cohen
  • Women and Girls with ASD by Hendrick

Instagram channels to follow

  • @Neurodivergentrebel
  • @neurodiversityproject
  • @rosielondoner
  • @mylittlefredbear

TED talks

  • Why everything you know about autism is wrong by Jac den Houting,
  • The world needs all kinds of minds by Temple Grandin.
  • Autism, what we know (and what we do not know yet) by Wendy Chung

YouTube vloggers and channels

  • Ambitious about Autism
  • Ask An Autistic
  • Chris Packham
  • Purple Ella

Relationship stresses

CLEAR

CLEAR is a Cornwall based charity for people of all ages and all genders impacted by abuse, sexual abuse, rape and other forms of emotional trauma. Providing person-centred counselling, trauma focussed therapy and group activity. Call 01872 261 147.

First Light

First Light provides specialist support to male and female, adult and children who have been impacted by sexual violence and domestic abuse in Devon and Cornwall. Call 0345 812 1212.

Relate

Call 0300 003 0396 or find your nearest local Relate centre.

Safer Futures recovery pathways

Safer Futures provides advice, support, recovery and behaviour change programmes for people affected by domestic abuse and sexual violence. 0300 777 4777.

Susie Project Cornwall

Offers support to men and women who have experienced domestic abuse and are no longer with their abuser. The project aims to help people in Cornwall regain their confidence, self-esteem and realise their ambitions for the future. Call 01209 699 241.

WAVES

Free confidential counselling and outreach for people who have experienced any form of domestic abuse or family violence. Call 07815 136 743 or visit the WAVES Counselling Project website for more information.

Women's Centre Cornwall

Women's Centre Cornwall offers face-to-face support in mid, east and north Cornwall but also provide an outreach providing face-to-face support to women and girls who have experienced any form of sexual or domestic violence or abuse. Call 01208 76 466.

Self-harm

Suicidal thoughts

Andy's Man Club

Provides talking groups for men all over the UK encouraging conversations about mental health on Facebook, Twitter and local meet groups, Find your nearest Andy's Man Club group.

Apps to help with suicidal thoughts

distrACT app

The distrACT app gives you easy, quick and discreet access to information and advice about self-harm and suicidal thoughts.

Stay Alive app

This app is full of resources, info and tools to help stay safe in a crisis. Visit the Prevent Suicide website to find out more.

Georgia’s Voice Cornwall

Georgia’s Voice Cornwall provides support and safe places for young women who are struggling with suicidal thoughts. Contact your local group via the website.

Papyrus

Papyrus is for people under 35 experiencing suicidal thoughts. Call 0800 068 4141.

Samaritans

Call 116 123.

Shout 24/7 text service

If you are struggling to cope and need immediate help text SHOUT to 85258.

Staying Safe

If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are supporting someone else, the Staying Safe website provides information on how to make a safety plan, video tutorials and online templates to guide you through the process.

Therapy, recovery and activities

Cornwall MIND

Social cafés, yoga, online creative writing, face to face garden projects, walking, art and music groups. If you need support, information or advice, email Cornwall Mind.

Hub of Hope

The Hub of Hope is an online searchable database of local and national support services across a wide range of mental health needs.

ORCHA

ORCHA is a comprehensive health app library website for residents of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. The shared aim is to make it quick and easy to find safe, approved health and wellbeing apps which can make a real difference to people’s lives.

Pentreath

Pentreath is a Cornish charity that provides support and guidance to people across the county experiencing and recovering from mental ill health. They offer 1 to 1 support and a range of projects to help people move forward in their lives and achieve their personal goals. Call 01726 862 727 for more information.

Recovery College Cornwall

Recovery College Cornwall run free courses for people living in Cornwall who are experiencing a wide range of mental ill health. Courses include:

  • how to deal with stress positively
  • manage anxiety
  • challenge unhelpful thoughts
  • build your confidence, self-esteem and your mojo
  • increase your emotional resilience
  • improve self care and find motivation
  • manage depression
  • build your recovery toolkit

Rethink Mental Illness Cornwall

Rethink work with people living with a mental illness in Cornwall to identify their aims and goals and to create individual action plans to achieve these.

Social prescribing

Your GP surgery may be able to refer you to a social prescriber or link worker who will arrange a face-to-face appointment during which you can find out about a range of community resources that can improve and support your emotional wellbeing. The purpose is to enable and facilitate you to design your own personalised social prescription empowering you to find solutions that will help to improve your health and wellbeing.

Talking Therapies

Offers NHS mental health therapy for stress, low mood and worry. You must be registered with a doctor’s surgery to use the service. Register for Talking Therapies online or call 01208 871 905.

Understanding and managing complex emotional needs

Young people

Action for Children

Action for Children provide practical and emotional care and support to children and young people. They ensure their voices are heard, and campaign to bring lasting improvements to their lives. Access support for parents.

Carefree Cornwall

Carefree works with young people aged 11 to 25, who are in and leaving care. Call 01209 204 333.

Childhood Bereavement Network

The Childhood Bereavement Network work with bereaved children, young people and their families across the UK giving them access to a choice of high quality local and national information, guidance and support to enable them to manage the impact of death on their lives.

Child Line

Childline offers free and confidential help for young people in the UK. Call 0800 11 11 for free 24/7, the number will not appear on any phone bill.

Children and adolescent mental health services

The Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) team provide assessment, advice and treatment for children and young people with severe and complex mental health problems. CAMHS also provide support and advice to their families or carers. For new referrals, call 01209 881 600 or email the CAMHS Access Team.

Cove App

Cove App which features a mood journal that allows young people to express their emotions through music.

Kooth

Kooth offer free online counselling and wellbeing service for young people aged 11 to 25 years.

The Mix

Support in Cornwall for the under 25’s. Call 0808 808 4994.

Re-Ignite

A mental health and wellbeing project for young people aged 14 to 24 living in Cornwall delivered through Pentreath.

Young Minds

A charity that provides support and empowers young people around their mental health. Text YM to 85258 for 24/7 support.

Young People Cornwall

Young People Cornwall run groups, mentoring, 1 to 1 activities, emotional resilience, self harming and coping skills. Call 01872 222 447.

Your Way

Your Way is a partnership between 5 youth and mental health services in Cornwall which provides youth services in Cornwall for and with young people aged 10 and over. Call 01872 613 001.