The Place2Be school counselling service wins top national award
The Place2Be has been chosen ahead of hundreds of other charities to
pick up the Advice, Support and Advocacy award at this year's Charity
Awards in London.
The Charity Award judges recognised the
Place2Be for the excellent work it does to help improve the emotional
wellbeing of children in order to prevent more serious mental health and
behavioural problems later in life, and in particular for its ‘A Place
for Parents’ initiative, a service developed to help parents address the
issues they face that may be contributing to their child’s problems.
Benita Refson OBE, our Chief Executive, said, “We
are really honoured to have won this award, The Place2Be helps parents
and children who desperately need support but who might otherwise be
overlooked. Many parents we work with say we make a difference to their
and their children’s lives and it is wonderful that the Charity Awards
has recognised this too. This award is for those who deliver and use our
service: Place2Be counsellors, schools and families.”
70% of the parents we see self-report depression
when they are first seen, but following one-to-one counselling sessions
with our parent counsellors, 96% of parents show reduced distress on a
clinical scoring system. One parent who has used the service said, “I no
longer wake up in the morning dreading the day that’s about to attack
me from all sides. A Place for Parents has given me strategies for
day-to-day living so I am now moving onwards; no longer frightened of
new experiences and ready to try anything. I have gained my
self-respect.”
Daniel Phelan, organiser of the
Charity Awards 2011 said, “The Charity Awards are all about drawing
attention to the talent and expertise being bought to bear on voluntary
activity in the UK. I’m delighted that The Place2Be has won the Advice,
Support & Advocacy award. The judges singled out those charities
whose excellence in charity management they felt will inspire others.
The Place2Be is an excellent organisation, the award is richly deserved
and I congratulate them on their achievements.”
Benita Refson and Catherine Roche, our Chief
Operating Officer, collected the award at a gala dinner at the Grosvenor
House Hotel on June 9th in front of 1,000 of the charity world’s most
senior representatives and celebrity guests including comedian Hugh
Dennis, author Monica Ali, star of Strictly come Dancing Bruno Tonioli
and newsreader Krishnan Guru Murthy, who presented awards in ten
separate categories.
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