📅 Tuesday 3rd June

🕥 10:30am – 12:30pm

📍 Art Therapy Studio, Elizabeth Newton Building, Springfield University Hospital, SE17 0YF

Led by Renata Russo, Art Psychotherapist, and co-facilitated by Zoe Hannam, this workshop offers a gentle introduction to art therapy—no experience needed. The focus is on self-expression and emotional wellbeing, not artistic skill.

🧠 What is Art Therapy?

It’s a powerful way to explore thoughts and feelings when words are hard to find. Through drawing, painting, collage and more, you’ll learn techniques to support relaxation, reflection, and healing.

👣 Look out for yellow signs on the day.

🚗 Parking available via the RingGo app on Springfield Drive (spaces limited), or nearby residential streets—please check signs for restrictions.

📞 Need help finding us? Call Zoe on 07725 048331

💌 Only a couple of spaces left!

Email maura.davies@swlstg.nhs.uk to reserve your place.

📅 Thursday 5 June 2025

🕘 9:00am – 11:30am

📍 Springfield Hospital, 15 Springfield Drive, SW17 0YF

If you’re a carer, family member, or friend of someone who has received care from SWLSTG Mental Health Trust in the last 5 years, we invite you to join our first Listening Event.

This is your chance to share feedback and help shape and improve the services we offer.

💬 What to expect:

• Breakfast & networking

• Workshop-style conversations

• Open discussions with Trust staff, carer centres & lived experience members

• Connect with other carers

This event supports the 2025 Carers Week theme: ‘Caring About Equality’.

🎟️ For tickets and enquiries, contact:

📧 involvement@swlstg.nhs.uk

If you have any special needs or support requirements, please let us know in advance.

We’d love to see you there!

📅 Wednesday 14th May 2025

🕓 4:30pm – 7:00pm

📍 The Malden Leisure Centre, KT3 4TA

A open and supportive event focused on your wellbeing.

✅ Safe space to chat with Mental Health clinicians

✅ Free mental health resources & support

✅ Free contraception and smoking advice

✅ Blood pressure, height & weight checks

Whether you’re looking for advice, support, or just someone to talk to, this is a safe and welcoming space for all.

No need to book – just come along!

Proudly supported by local services. 💙

We’re delighted to share a powerful new short film created by our partners at Young Carers Illustrations and filmed by acclaimed Japanese documentary filmmaker Mari Yamamoto.

Following the success of Ana Graça’s charming picture book Young Carers in Bunnyland, their team held a series of creative workshops with young carers—including participants from Kingston Young Carers.

These workshops invited children to share their ideas for new illustrations and storylines. Now, inspired by these conversations, Ana is beginning work on a second picture book.

This moving short film highlights the importance of identifying young carers at an early age and features Ana using Kamishibai—a traditional Japanese form of storytelling—to engage the children in meaningful discussion.

Kingston Young Carers have played a vital role throughout the project, helping shape the stories, choosing character names, and contributing to the creative process in a truly collaborative way.

Eighteen-year-old Helen Abdullah, a Kingston young carer, shares her own experience in the film. She explains how being identified as a young carer at just five years old changed her life—and how the support she received from Kingston Carers’ Network (KCN) made a real difference. Helen also speaks passionately about the many young carers who go unidentified for years and miss out on the help they urgently need.

This film is not only a celebration of young carers’ creativity, but also a call to action to ensure every young carer is seen, heard, and supported as early as possible.

Our partners at the RNIB want to understand your motivations to volunteer, what stops you from volunteering, and what might encourage you to get involved with a volunteer role in the future.

Got a spare 15 minutes?  Complete their latest Voice of the Customer survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RWX5Y9P.  

Thank you.

We'd love to hear your thoughts on on our services: Take our annual survey online.

The survey is being carried out by Carers Trust who are a major national UK charity solely focused on improving the lives of carers. Kingston Carers' Network is a Network Partner of Carers Trust who work locally to support carers, giving them access to help, advice and breaks from caring.

Who should complete the questionnaire?

The questions should be answered by you, as the carer who has accessed help and support from Kingston Carers’ Network. If you need help to complete the questionnaire, the answers should be given from your point of view – not the point of view of the person helping. Your answers should all relate to support you have received from Kingston Carers' Network not for example from your local authority.