A new four-year agreement has been signed that will see Abergavenny Town Council continue to provide guaranteed funding of £10,000 a year to local mental health charity Mind Monmouthshire in return for the provision of a range of services to local people.

Since the pandemic, pressures on mental health and welfare services have grown significantly. The cost of living crisis and rocketing prices for fuel, food and services is now further adding to the stress faced by increasing numbers of people.

Chief Executive of Mind Monmouthshire, Chris Bowie, speaking at the signing of the agreement, said, ‘We are delighted to continue our partnership with Abergavenny Town Council, which is very important to us. It enables us to provide a range of services to help and support many local people who have a range of mental health problems’.

Over the last year Mind Monmouthshire has provided help, advice and assistance to 466 people in the Abergavenny area alone.

As a charity, its funding comes from a range of sources, including the National Lottery, which provides funding for the organisation’s Rural Workers Project.

This is a stark reminder of the pressures arising from working in an industry where people often live in remote areas and work in isolation without the friendship and support that many of us gain from our work colleagues.

The terrible pressures being faced by increasing numbers of people is reflected in the support given to 58 people over the past year because their mental health has been hit by a danger of losing their home, while a further 35 have been helped through Mind Monmouthshire’s Welfare Rights Project.

Many other local people have been helped through Wellbeing and Resilience Support, which has supported people to improve their mental health through participation in a range of courses, groups and activities.

A Town Council spokesperson said that ‘while Abergavenny is a wonderful place to live we should never forget that increasing numbers of our community are finding the pressures of life are too much and they need the services provided by Mind Monmouthshire. The council is really grateful that they are based here in Abergavenny and provide a range of fantastic services for our community’.