Yorkshire families invited to enjoy the first Big Picnic

The charity is asking supporters, families and workplaces to take part in the event on Thursday August 29 to raise funds and awareness for parents who are supporting a child with mental health challenges. Families, friends, neighbours and colleagues across the region are invited to host their own picnic and will be given a fundraising pack that includes a specially designed recipe from former Great British Bake Off contestant Dan Hunter. The kit also contains fundraising materials and tips on how to make the event a success, in exchange for an optional donation to Parenting Mental Health.

Additionally, the charity will host a virtual picnic on August 29 for its 40,000+ community members, filled with interactive workshops, talks and activities to boost wellbeing, including sessions on therapeutic journalling, breathwork, creative writing, clay therapy and a digital picnic that families can join from the comfort of their own home.

Suzanne Alderson, Founder, Parenting Mental Health, says: “Our aim is to reach one million parents by 2026, from those who want to educate themselves on mental health issues that might arise in the future, to families who are in the thick of a mental health crisis and need immediate support. We hope families across Yorkshire will get involved with our first ever Big Picnic event, as it will play a big part in achieving this goal and help us to raise essential funds to continue providing our services to parents who don’t have anywhere else to turn.

“We also hope that the event will provide families with some much needed respite and an opportunity to connect, as well as giving something back to our incredible community. Supporting a child with mental health issues can be hugely challenging and isolating for mums, dads and carers, so the Big Picnic will offer them a chance to speak to others in a similar situation, whether they feel able to host a picnic themselves or join our virtual session and focus on their own wellbeing.”

As well as the Big Picnic cupcake recipe from Dan Hunter, crochet expert Moonfly's Emporium will provide a crochet pattern for a picnic basket and the charity’s food community will be sharing recipes for their favourite sweet and savoury picnic dishes. Participants are welcome to host their picnics on the day, during the bank holiday weekend or in the week leading up to it.

More information is available at www.parentingmentalhealth.org/The-Big-Picnic, where organisers can also subscribe to receive a fundraising pack and tips on how to make the event a success.