JULY 18, 2024

COMMUNITY VITALITY 2024

Canadian Mental Health Association Thames Valley Addiction and Mental Health Services (CMHA TVAMHS)

Francophone Ethnocultural Friendship Bench

GRANT: $140,181 FOR 3 YEARS

An innovative approach to mental health support influenced by a model created in Zimbabwe, known as the Friendship Bench, is coming to the London and Middlesex area.

With a three-year $140,181 Community Vitality grant, the Canadian Mental Health Association  Thames Valley Addiction and Mental Health Services (CHMA-TVAMHS) is introducing a new approach to support diverse French-speaking people, many of whom are newcomers to Canada from countries in Africa.

“Research and recent local focus groups show that stigma, distrust, and cultural and linguistic discomfort contribute to the hesitation of many ethnocultural Francophones in London and Middlesex to access mental health services from mainstream agencies. This disconnect between need and connection to support creates health inequity,” says Pam Tobin, CEO, CMHA-TVAMHS.

 The new model is designed to break down barriers to accessing support by training trusted community members to connect with people informally in a safe and comfortable space. They come together to discuss and problem-solve challenges affecting people’s psychological well-being.

 CMHA-TVAMHS and partner organizations will adapt this approach by training members of the local ethnocultural Francophone community in supportive skills, such as talk therapy. These community-based helpers will also assist with finding and referring people to appropriate services within the London and Middlesex mental health and addiction system – a system that is often difficult to navigate for newcomers who do not speak English as their first language.

 “Adapting the Friendship Bench model within French-speaking communities in London and Middlesex will strengthen social connection, improve mental health well-being at the community and individual level, and enhance health and racial equality,” says Tobin.

 The project involves several partners who each have existing services and connections within Francophone ethnocultural communities, including, Family Service Thames Valley (FSTV), L'Entite 1, Acces-Franco-Sante London (AFSL), Carrefour Francophone de London (CCFL), Reseau en Immigration Francophone Centre Sud-Ouest (RIF-CSO), and MINDS of London.

Find out more about the other Community Vitality recipients:

• Canadian Mental Health Association Thames Valley Addiction and Mental Health Services: Francophone Ethnocultural Friendship Bench ($140,181 for 3 years)

• Changing Ways: Collaborating for a Safer London ($150,000 for 2 years)

• Forest City Gallery: Collaboratory Community Outreach Program ($120,775 for 3 years)

• London InterCommunity Health Centre: Women of the World (WOW) – Childcare provision ($63,000 for 3 years)

• London Public Library: Transitional Case Worker Program ($280,000 for 3 years)

• Low-Income Family Empowerment Sole-Support Parents Information Network (LIFE*SPIN): Empowering London's Low-Income Families: A Fresh Approach to Food Security ($350,000 for 3 years)

• Regional HIV/AIDS Connection: MAGICAL (Multicultural Accessible Gatherings Improving 2SLGBTQIA+ Community Affirmation in London) ($67,000 for 1 year)

• Urban Roots London in partnership with Siloam United Church: Cultivating Food Security Through Urban Agriculture ($282,354 for 3 years)