On Friday 17th November, students at Oasis Academy Coulsdon took to the rowing machines and exercise bikes in an attempt to row and cycle 101 miles for International Men’s Day. This figure was chosen as it represents the number of men who commit suicide each week in the UK.
Students from across the year groups as well as staff signed up to support this event, donating £1 to either cycle one mile, or row 500 metres towards the target distance. Students had to go at quite a pace for us to be able to accommodate everyone who wanted to take part within the day. By the end of the day students and staff had managed to row and cycle a combined distance of 118 miles in support of men’s mental health, and we are incredibly proud of their achievement.
Year 8 boys came up with the idea for the event and they were helped to organise it by Ms Kenison, Head of PSHE and Mental Health Lead at the Academy. Ms Kenison is passionate about creating open dialogues around mental health within the Academy and said of the event “The Year 8 boys who wanted to raise awareness of Men's Mental Health. They hoped the event would help create a conversation around mental health and to help remove the stigma. I am very proud of the students who ran the event and everyone who took part. It is important to normalise the conversation around mental health, especially for the boys and men in our school.”
