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Published
11 November 2026

Staying Connected, Newham's November Mental Health event series

A series of Staying Connected events are being held throughout November 2026 at Newham Centre of Mental Health, connecting community organisations, services, carers, staff and service users.
Newham Staying Connected events

The event series launched in the afternoon on Monday 2 November with stalls from community organisations including Forest Gate Community Garden, Cycle sisters, West Ham United Foundation, Well Newham, and INUF.

Gina Ntzimani, Directorate Lead for Occupational Therapy in Newham Adult Mental Health, organised the series and said: "It's been a brilliant day and I'm looking forward to the other events coming up. We wanted to bring other services together with community organisations.

"I was amazed to find out how many different organisations are in our neighbourhood and how rich we are. It's the first time these groups have been in a mental health unit and it's so important to help with fighting the stigma in mental health and create partnerships. We're working really hard and the only way to change things is to create partnerships because we all need each other." 

Organised by Newham Occupational Therapy Team, the series is for Newham service users and carers as well as staff to connect with others, find community groups, meet local organisations and discover wellbeing activities, volunteering and learning opportunities. Everyone is welcome to drop-in between 2-4pm on the dates below, have a chat and add to the mural for 'What is Newham for us?'.

The next set of events in the series will see other local organisations take part, including Nutrition Kitchen, MIND, Recovery College, IPS, and many more.

Event dates:

2 November 2026 | 2:00pm - 4:00pm

11 November 2026 | 2:00pm - 4:00pm

16 November 2026 | 2:00pm - 4:00pm

23 November 2026 | 2:00pm - 4:00pm 

Forest Gate Community Garden is a community-led green space which the ELFT Speech and Language team use regularly on Wednesdays to provide their therapy group for families. You can find arts and crafts, solar panels, hot water for tea and coffee, and the peacefulness of nature when you visit.

Cycle sisters is a women-ran charity that creates accessible and empowering spaces for Muslim and ethnically diverse women to cycle. They provide free one-to-one and group lessons ranging from beginner-friendly to expert cyclists. All bikes are provided and the charity caters to all (service users, staff and the public).

West Ham United Foundation is a charity that promotes health and wellbeing through community participation in sport across east London. Every Friday, the charity does a mental health check-in, which is free for anyone above 18, where you walk and end with a game of football. No football abilities required!

Well Newham was also present and is a project under Newham Council public health which works in collaboration with the likes of ELFT and Newham Hospital. All the local services in Newham can be found on the Joy App platform here.

INUF is a service user-led mental health charity that offers wellbeing activities, advocacy and community support since its inception in September 1999. The charity runs a women-led group followed by a men's group every Monday. Activities range from Pilates to football training, yoga, soup kitchen and gym visits, and art workshops where you can create mosaics and seasonal decorations.