When do people go out?

We work hard to 'fit around' the needs of our service users, but generally we tend to go out in the daytime or early evening because that is when we can access a good range of activities and because we know that people get a little nervous at night. Our staff have other jobs and family commitments so, although we try to be fexible, it really does depend on when staff are available. However, everything we do is by mutual agreement - we might encourage but we never ever force service users to do something they really don't want to do.

How can I take part in the 'Social Opportunities' project?

Referrals come to us via the Community Mental Health Teams in Rhyl and Denbigh, so anyone who thinks that the 'Social Opportunities' project might be good for them should speak to their CPN or social worker in the first instance. We don't have a long list of 'rules', but anyone we work with must meet some basic criteria, namely:

• they must live in Denbighshire,
• they must have a carer such as a family member or friend etc who helps them out from time-to-time (it doesn't have to be someone who lives with them necessarily),
• they must continue to receive support from mental health teams in either Rhyl or Denbigh.

We must point out that we cannot help everyone who applies because our funding only enables us to work with ten people at any one time. Whilst we hope people will make new friends and not need us anymore, realistically most require our support for quite long periods of time. However no one should be put off applying because if we can show there is greater need for this work we may be able to obtain extra funding for further development.