Richmond Fellowship marked International Men’s Day on Monday 19 November by shining the spotlight on men’s mental health, male victims of domestic abuse and celebrating men who work in the charity sector.

In the UK, suicide remains the biggest killer of men under the age of 45 and according to the Crime Survey for England and Wales from the year ending March 2017, around 713,000 men experienced a form of domestic abuse.

Across the day we shared some videos of Matt’s recovery journey on social media.

Matt received support from Richmond Fellowship’s 24 Hour Supported Housing service in Stowmarket, Suffolk after his mental health was affected by years of domestic abuse at the hands of an ex-partner.

We also shared Oliver’s story. Oliver’s just joined our Cambridge Employment service as an Employment Advisor. He spoke about why he made the move to work in the charity sector.

Derek Caren, Chief Executive of Richmond Fellowship said:

“It’s really important that men feel empowered to talk openly about issues affecting them. Topics such as men’s mental health and male suicide are areas that need to be targeted in a considered way. The fact that one in four men feels the need to take their own lives in avoidable circumstances is of great concern. At Richmond Fellowship we provide a number of crisis support services across England and on the Isle of Wight. I’d urge anyone who feels vulnerable to reach out”.

Glen Poole, UK coordinator of International Men’s Day said:

“I’ve been really inspired by the stories shared by Richmond Fellowship on International Men’s Day. It’s important to see a national mental health charity raising awareness of some of the issues affecting men today, such as men’s mental health and male victims of domestic violence”.

You can watch the videos on Richmond Fellowship’s Facebook and Twitter pages.