Time To Change

Time To Change are a growing movement of people changing the way that people think and act about mental health. Since starting in 2007, 3.4 million adults in England have improved attitudes towards mental health problems. As well as this, they have helped those to be more open to talking about mental health problems. Thanks to funding from the Department of Health, Comic Relief and the Big Lottery Fund, they have been able to strengthen who they are and the message that they are putting across. 

Their aims are to:

• Improve public attitudes and behaviour towards people with mental health problems.
• Reduce the amount of discrimination that people with mental health problems report in their personal relationships, their social lives and at work.
• Make sure even more people with mental health problems can take action to challenge stigma and discrimination in their communities, in workplaces, in schools and online.
• Create a sustainable campaign that will continue long into the future.

This is an example of an organisation who are directly addressing mental illness, the taboo around it and helping people overcome their problems. This therefore demonstrates that if these areas are addressed, then the issue will be overcome. 

One way in reach they reach out to others and aim to make a difference is through social marketing. They regularly run campaigns using a 'social media marketing approach to help change people's attitude and behaviours about mental health'. Through carrying out their own research they have identified that there is a 'persistent gap between the attitudes of men and women, with men consistently showing less favourable attitudes'. This research has informed their most recent campaign 'In Your Corner', aiming to encourage men to be more open and supportive to those fighting mental health.