New mental health facilities open in Harrogate

Wellspring House was heaving with supporters for its official opening on Tuesday night - each person having played an important role in making Wellspring Therapy and Training’s ambitious vision a reality.

With a rising demand for its services, the charity has moved into a bigger home - relocating from Prospect Road to nearby St Andrew’s vicarage, now re-named Wellspring House.

Wellspring’s team of dedicated staff, volunteers, trustees and supporters were tireless in their efforts to raise £300,000 to transform the vicarage, which was generously bought by the Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation.

And Tuesday’s grand opening was a chance to showcase all of their hard work and the plans for Wellspring’s future. Visitors were given tours of the new facilities, which include play therapy rooms, training spaces, and rooms for new therapies.

Wellspring’s executive director, Emily Fullarton, said: “This is just the start - we’ve got many dreams and plans for this building. First of all, we want to do more of what we already do because we know it works and we know it’s what our community needs - so we want to deliver more counselling, we want to deliver more training, and we are open to having more volunteers.

“But as well as that, we want to create new services, we want to respond to the needs that we see.”

Speaking about Wellspring’s new play therapy rooms, Emily said: “We know statistics say that 75 per cent of adult mental health issues start in childhood, and that early intervention is crucial to stop those issues being taken into adulthood

“We’re open to seeing our training room being used really regularly too, because we want to see our local churches, our local businesses, be better equipped to look after the mentally unwell.

"Wellspring has always been a charity of the gaps - seeking to serve the unmet need that we see in our community and respond creatively to it."

Wellspring patron, the Bishop of Leeds, the Rt Rev Nick Baines, blessed the building and unveiled the Wellspring House commemorative plaque.

The Bishop said: “This is a place of genuine healing because it creates a space in which people can discover that they are loved and that they are known, and that they don't have to hide. And that is an enormous gift. It’s an honour to be a patron of Wellspring.”

Among the guests attending the official opening was John Wood, the headteacher of St Aidan's CE High School.

He said: "We have a relationship with Wellspring through a school counsellor. This is a wonderful facility to support us in our work supporting young people

"We do recognise that there is a need, and this is going to make a significant contribution to our community."