Professional Documents
Culture Documents
DHI Friends
DHI Friends newsletter #9 Autumn 2015
www.dhi-online.org.uk
Of f The Wall
Turns Ten!
Off The Wall, our client-led magazine, is
celebrating its 10th year! We find out more.
The appropriately named Off The Wall (OTW) started
life on the wall - as a noticeboard for clients to share
news, information and advice to help in their recoveries.
As a group of people going through similar life
experiences, clients felt they had a lot to offer one
another, and they were right! So much was being shared
on the board that clients suggested transforming it into
a magazine, to make it accessible to more people. And
the fact that it is still going strong 10 years later is a
testament to the power of peer-led support, and the
commitment of our clients to helping one another in
their recoveries.
Our graphic designers, the Group of Seven, soon
began to offer their expertise on a voluntary basis,
bringing the magazines production to a professional
level and making it a project that clients would really
be proud to contribute to.
Continued on page 2
Inside this issue: A word from our CEO 2 / Annual Event 3 / Spreading
the word on legal highs 4 / News in brief 7 / Positive about disability 8
DHI Friends
Issue 9
Issue 9
DHI Friends
Our 2015
Annual Event
Rising to the
Challenge
Wednesday 11th November, 6:00-8:00pm
The Guildhall, High Street, Bath BA1 5AW
This will be an opportunity
to celebrate another year
with us and to get a better
understanding of what
we do and the challenges
facing our clients in the
current climate. Speaking
of our 2014 Annual Event,
Councillor Vic Pritchard said:
I met people who had
previously plunged into
seemingly hopeless
addictions from which there
appeared no return until,
with the help of DHI, they
were able to return to normal
productive lives.
Guest speaker:
Stephen Robertson,
CEO, Big Issue
Foundation
RSVP to events@dhibath.org.uk
3
DHI Friends
Issue 9
HI and Wiltshire
Council teamed up
with the Natural
Theatre Company to
create an interactive production
educating young people on Novel
Psychoactive Substances (NPS) or
legal highs.
Issue 9
DHI Friends
DHI Friends
Issue 9
Peer supporter
training helped
me to gain
my own
independence
and to learn
to help.
Aisha, Bristol Peer Supporter
Issue 9
DHI Friends
News in brief
Reach
celebrates
fourth
anniversary
Our Reach Floating Support
Service, which provides support
and advice to help homeless,
socially excluded or otherwise
vulnerable people to live
independently recently celebrated
its fourth birthday. In that time
the service has gone from strength
to strength. Reach now works
with approximately 200 clients
at any one time, and in 2014/15
71% of homeless clients were
successfully supported into secure
accommodation, and 90% of
those leaving the service had been
supported to live independently.
If you need support you can
contact Reach Floating
Support Services on:
T: 01225 422156
M: 07917 637846
info@dhireach.org.uk
www.dhireach.org.uk
Goodbye Ben!
We would like to wish farewell and
good luck to Ben McFarland, our
Bristol Services Manager, who is
moving to Germany with his family.
Thanks for all your hard work Ben,
we will miss you!
DHI Friends
Issue 9
Please contact
Volunteers
@dhi-online.org.uk
We aim
to reflect
our values
in every area
of our organisation, and this is
an important acknowledgement
that we are doing just that in our
employment practices.
Dont be a
stranger
We have strengthened our
social media activity and
were now regularly
updating Facebook and
Twitter. Follow us for updates
on our work and Share or
Like our posts to help us
raise awareness of
important issues.
@DHI_Online
/ DevelopingHealth
Independence