The next BRIT Challenge will start on
25th January 2025 & finish on 25th March 2025
BRIT
PARTNERS
We believe a collaborative approach is vital to support and improve young adult mental health and fitness throughout the UK.
EDUCATION PARTNERS
To deliver our aim of supporting and improving young adult and student mental health and fitness, we need every University and College Leadership Team and every Students' Union in the UK to invite and encourage their students, and staff, to take part in the annual BRIT Challenge.
We believe the success of the annual BRIT Challenge requires a whole university, college and community approach to supporting and improving young adult and student mental health and fitness.
To invite and encourage their members to champion The British Inspiration Trust’s aims and the BRIT Challenge, we are delighted to have partnered with Education Governing Bodies who share our vision.
Their Chief Executives & Chairs are inviting every University Vice-Chancellor and College Principal to embrace the BRIT Challenge and engage their Leadership Teams to enter teams, help champion the opportunity for their students and staff to take part and encourage participation.
The NUS also have also partnered with us to encourage every Students' Union to enter teams in our annual BRIT Challenge in order to maximise student participation, help destigmatise mental health and champion equality, diversity and inclusion.
SPORT PARTNERS AND
SPECIAL RELATIONSHIPS
Our aim of delivering inspiration to students and young adults at universities, colleges and specialist colleges is through the support of our BRIT Ambassador family.
We are inviting Sporting Governing Bodies to encourage their Olympians, Paralympians and elite athletes from all sports to join our BRIT Ambassador family, promote the BRIT Challenge at a university and/or college of their choice, help destigmatise mental health and champion equality, diversity and inclusion.
These inspirational Ambassadors will inform us of which university or college they will visit during the annual BRIT Challenge (every February). We will then introduce the Ambassador to the institution’s BRIT Challenge Point of Contact. There are approximately 450 universities, colleges and specialist colleges in the UK, so partnering with Sporting Governing Bodies will assist in encouraging their current and retired sports personalities to join us. We will also ask the institutions themselves to encourage their sporting alumni to take part and consider joining our BRIT Ambassador family.
CHARITY PARTNERS
We continue to forge partnerships and special relationships with charities who provide vital support to students & young adults through existing and proactive health, wellbeing and mental fitness programmes and services.
We are inviting every university and college team taking part in the BRIT Challenge to choose second charity to raise funds for, alongside BRIT, to support local, regional and national charities. These are some of our charity partners that you may wish to choose to support as you take on the BRIT Challenge;
SPECIAL PARTNERSHIPS
We are delighted to have enjoyed special partnerships and relationships with the following organisations who have either championed our work to support young adult mental health or provide expert advice and support;
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Royal Yachting Association
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Royal Navy
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National Fire Chief's Council
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The Foundation for Positive Mental Health
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Expert Self Care
Our aspiration is to develop long-term partnerships and strong working relationship with Mental Health Charities, Education and Sporting Governing Bodies and all UK universities, colleges, specialist colleges and Students' Unions in order to deliver a collectively powerful impact in support of young adult mental health and fitness throughout the UK.
“The work being undertaken by the British Inspiration Trust (BRIT) to improve the mental health and fitness of young adults throughout the UK by delivering the annual BRIT Challenge is truly commendable.
The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly compounding existing mental health challenges faced by young adults and the support BRIT can offer those in difficulty through their annual feelgood February fundraiser is invaluable.
I am encouraged that so many current and retired Olympians and Paralympians are joining BRIT as ambassadors; they will undoubtedly inspire and encourage young adult participation in the annual BRIT Challenge.”
Rt Hon Sir Hugh Robertson KCMG DL
Chair
British Olympic Association
“Expert Self Care are delighted to have entered into a special relationship with The British Inspiration Trust (BRIT). For over 10 years, BRIT have been striving to support young adult mental health and their annual inclusive BRIT Challenge is an exciting opportunity for every university and college student, and staff member, to take part in a UK-wide feel-good February fundraiser to improve and support young adult mental health and fitness.
BRIT are a collaborative charity and in 2022, they will be inviting every university, college and Students’ Union to enter teams in the BRIT Challenge and chose a second charity to raise funds for, alongside BRIT. This decision will undoubtedly support many local, regional and national charities whose fundraising efforts have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
BRIT are striving to unite the education, sport and charity sectors to improve young adult mental health throughout the UK and their approach to champion other charities and support services is both innovative and inspiring. BRIT are determined to destigmatise mental health and their BRIT Ambassadors, who share their lived experience at universities and colleges of their choice, enthuse students to participate in their annual BRIT Challenge and assist with signposting to support available to students and staff.
I am delighted that BRIT will be providing an area on their websites to signpost students and staff to apps available that can support their mental health, including our Expert Self Care apps, and we look forward to promoting the annual BRIT Challenge and encouraging every university, college and Students’ Union to enter teams.”
Dr Knut Schroeder
GP and Health Information App Developer
Founder & Director, Expert Self Care Ltd
Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer, Centre for Academic Primary Care, University of Bristol
The distrACT app is free and gives you easy, quick and discreet access to information and advice about self-harm and suicidal thoughts.
The content has been created by doctors and experts in self-harming and suicide prevention.
Who is it suitable for?
Anyone over the age of 17 who's concerned about self-harming.
How does it work?
The distrACT app aims to help you better understand urges to self-harm, and encourages you to monitor and manage your symptoms. It can also help reduce the risk of suicide.
There's advice and support information, including emergency contact numbers, how best to work with healthcare professionals, and safer alternatives to self-harming.
In the app's Chill Zone, you can find resources that may help you feel better, including art, books, films, music, poems, quotes, stories and online videos.
How do I access it?
distrACT is free to download from the App Store and Google Play.
The distrACT App
APP PARTNERSHIPS
We are delighted to have forged a special relationship with Expert Self Care, Feeling Good and The Foundation for Positive Mental Health who provide apps to support and improve mental health and wellbeing.
"Adferiad Recovery are honoured to have entered into a special relationship with The British Inspiration Trust (BRIT) ahead of the annual BRIT Challenge, which is being delivered to support and improve young adult, student and staff mental health and fitness throughout the UK. As an organisation working with people facing complex life challenges, we know that if we support our young people well, we can provide them with the resilience to face those challenges. In order to do this our educators and support staff are key.
BRIT’s outstanding vision to deliver the annual inclusive BRIT Challenge is a great opportunity for students and staff of all abilities, throughout Wales, to participate through many different activities and reach their distance and fundraising targets while having great fun and building friendships. The BRIT Challenge is flexible to enable universities and colleges to choose when they take part, between 23rd January and 23rd March 2023, and plan their activities.
Every team taking part in the BRIT Challenge can choose a second charity to raise funds for, alongside BRIT, and we hope Welsh university and college teams will choose Adferiad Recovery as their second charity. This will help fund our work to support people with mental health problems – with a special emphasis on those with a serious mental illness – and their carers and families. We also support others with a range of disabilities and their carers and families.
We wish every Welsh university and college team the very best of luck as they take on the BRIT Challenge.”
Alun Thomas
Chief Executive
Adferiad Recovery
“The British Inspiration Trust (BRIT)’s annual BRIT Challenge is a great opportunity for every college in the UK to participate in an inclusive wellbeing initiative that provides the flexibility to decide on; when (between the days of the BRIT Challenge) they take part; what wellbeing initiatives can be delivered to support students and staff; a specific area of mental health they would like to destigmatise (LGBTQI+, Anti-Racism, Disability Inclusion, Body Image); what Volunteering/Acts of Kindness in the Community projects they would like to complete; and which local, regional or national charity, they would like to raise funds for, alongside BRIT.
The BRIT Challenge has evolved by listening to students and staff to ensure that it; further supports and improves student and staff wellbeing; complements other mental health initiatives; can support ongoing curriculum activities; and provides evidence to support colleges to share the positive impact they have within their communities.
Good For Me Good For FE is delighted to have forged a partnership with BRIT and we very much hope all our College Partners will embrace the BRIT Challenge and use our Good For ME Good For FE toolkit to measure impact of their participation. We have pledged our support to BRIT for the next five years with the aim of growing the BRIT Challenge and encouraging every college in the UK to take part; together we could have an extraordinary impact on our communities, students and staff.”
Liz Lake
Development Director
London & South East Education Group (LSEC) and Good For ME Good For FE lead with BRIT
The
Positive Student Planner
The Positive Student Planner, from Samaritans x Positive Planner, is the first dedicated student wellbeing journal. Co-created with students and student mental health expert Dr Dominique Thompson, it’s a screen-free way to tackle the overwhelm student life can bring.
"I have spent most of my professional career as a GP working with students, and I have seen a significant rise in anxiety, loneliness and perfectionism, leading to an increasing need for support from staff in universities and colleges. That is why I was so happy to be part of developing the Positive Student Planner. It is a wonderful, creative and supportive new way for students to help themselves day to day, whilst allowing them to develop life skills around dealing with challenges."
Dr Dominique Thompson
Young people’s mental health expert
The
Positive Student Planner
The Positive Student Planner, from Samaritans x Positive Planner, is the first dedicated student wellbeing journal. Co-created with students and student mental health expert Dr Dominique Thompson, it’s a screen-free way to tackle the overwhelm student life can bring.
What to expect from The Positive Student Planner:
A new wellbeing journal backed by experts, specifically designed to support students both emotionally and practically. It helps you tackle things like independent living, budgeting, meeting new people and balancing work and fun. It guides you to develop coping mechanisms for tough times, and positive wellbeing habits that will benefit you in the long term. Take a look inside the planner here.
Sales of the planner will help Samaritans continue to reach anyone struggling to cope.
Order yours here, and use the code PositivePlanner15 at checkout for a 15% student discount.
Or if you work at a university, college, or Student Union and are looking to make a bulk order you can do so here.
"It has helped with my anxiety as I feel more in control of my time and ensure I prioritise myself as well as my studies. This has made me more productive and feel better mentally. It's made me feel a lot happier, less anxious and more relaxed as I can visually see what I've achieved, what I need to do and what things I can improve on. It's also helped me balance my work and social life as it helps me recognise I need to have 'me time' and not just focus on uni work. Overall, I really enjoy The Positive Student Planner and would recommend it to any student, particularly if they struggle with anxiety or time management problems.”
Tina, 20, University of Kent
