Time to Change (mental health campaign)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 | |
| Founded | 2007 |
|---|---|
| Type | Charitable organisation |
| Focus | Mental illness |
| Location |
|
Region served | England |
| Website | www |
Time to Change is a mental health campaign in England, launched in 2007 with the objective of reducing mental health-related stigma and discrimination.
Time to Change (TTC) was formed in 2007[1] by mental health charities MIND and Rethink Mental Illness, aiming to reduce mental health-related stigma and discrimination. A specific objective was to reduce stigma and discrimination by 5 per cent in the first 12 months. The first four years were funded by grants of £20.5 million from the Big Lottery Fund and Comic Relief.[2]
TTC also asked organisations and individuals to sign a pledge supporting its anti-stigma programme. Organisations signing the pledge include the Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority, British Gas, British Telecom, Lloyds Banking Group, Ernst & Young, E.ON, PepsiCo and parts of the National Health Service.[3] A pledge event took place at the Houses of Parliament in October 2013, giving MPs an opportunity to sign up.[3]
In 2011, TTC launched a four-week television advertising campaign to promote its new slogan: "It's time to talk. It's Time to Change."[4]
The campaign was fronted by a number of celebrities, including political strategist Alastair Campbell, presenter Davina McCall,[5] singers Shojon, Frankie Sandford, and boxer Ricky Hatton.[6] In 2014, the campaign supported the "Laughing for a Change" project run by actress Janice Connolly, which aimed to promote awareness of mental health through a stand-up comedy tour.[7]
Time to Change was drawn to a close on 31 March 2021, saying that despite an "impressive track record, and identifying that the job is not yet done, the Government has confirmed it is not in a position to fund the programme into the future".[8]
Outcomes
An academic study was carried out to measure whether TTC had met their 5 per cent target in the first 12 months. The study measured "progress toward meeting TTC's target of a 5 per cent reduction in discrimination".[2]
An independent evaluation of the campaign's first four years took place in 2013. Though it found a reduction in discrimination from friends and families, change in attitudes from health professionals was negligible.[9]
