Shropshire Libraries launch “Reading Well for mental health” with titles by Matt Haig, Sathnam Sanghera and Ruby Wax

The ‘lifesaving’ 2018 “Reading Well for mental health” titles by The Reading Agency and Society of Chief Librarians were announced at a flagship event at the Wellcome Trust on Tuesday 5 June 2018.

Each title will offer invaluable support to people with mental health needs and their carers, who are at increased risk of loneliness according to recent research.

“Initiatives like this make people with mental health conditions and their carers feel less lonely.”

Sathnam Sanghera (Reading Well author, “The Boy with the Topknot”)

2018’s powerful book list, which will help people read well to stay well, is penned by bestselling and highly-regarded authors including Matt Haig (How to Stay Alive); Cathy Rentzenbrink (A Manual for Heartache); Sathnam Sanghera (The Boy with the Topknot); Ruby Wax (A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled) and many more. The expert-endorsed reads are available free in Shropshire Libraries as well as in other participating libraries across England.

Matt Haig said:

“Reading Well is an absolutely brilliant scheme that recognises the true proven therapeutic power of words. It will help people facing mental struggles to feel understood, and to get help. This scheme will improve, and maybe even save, many lives.”

Since its launch in 2013, the Reading Well programme has impacted the lives of over 778,000 people in the UK. Katie Clarke-Day, who lives with multiple long-term conditions, has helped co-produce the scheme with the Reading Agency and Society of Chief Librarians.

Katie Clarke-Day, Reading Well co-producer from the Coalition for Collaborative Care, said:

“Mental health issues are still shrouded in stigma. They are also by their nature isolating and scary. There is a lot of information contained within these books that could save lives; sometimes just the simple recognition that the way you feel has a name or that other people felt this too. I don’t think we can underestimate the power of this list. I also have a lot of respect for libraries both in terms of the wealth of knowledge stored in the books they contain, but also in the community space and hub of activity they provide for so many people across the country.”

Lezley Picton, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for culture and leisure, said:

“Shropshire Libraries are ideally placed in the heart of our communities. They play a vital role in creating healthier and happier communities, not just by providing free resources, like this new Reading Well collection for mental health, but also through public engagement in activities, events and volunteering.”

The list is curated with mental health experts and includes books to support people undergoing talking therapies, as well as guided and unguided self-help.

This year the Government appointed a Minister for Loneliness to address the growing ‘loneliness epidemic’, and in April 2018 the Office for National Statistics released a report raising awareness of the link between health and isolation. People with a health condition are 56% more likely to report loneliness than those without, and those with caring responsibilities were 37% more likely to be lonely.

Sathnam Sanghera, Reading Well author, said:

“It is said that we read to know we are not alone, and this is especially the case with mental health, one of the most isolating diseases around.”

Related links:

Shropshire Libraries – shropshire.gov.uk/libraries

Reading Agency – www.readingagency.org.uk

Reading Well –  https://reading-well.org.uk/

Society of Chief Librarians – www.goscl.com

Art Council England – http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/

Wellcome – www.wellcome.ac.uk