At Mind in Bexley, we are proud to introduce our Champion Health Checks Service, an initiative designed to raise awareness, empower communities and support people with severe mental illness (SMI) in maintaining their physical health.

Why it matters

People living with conditions such as Schizophrenia, Bipolar disorder and other serious mental illness diagnoses often face greater challenges when it comes to physical health: higher risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, respiratory illness and other long-term conditions. Ensuring regular physical health checks is a vital step in reducing this health inequality gap.

We are aiming to support a wide network of community champions — volunteers, charity staff, social-care professionals, friends and family — to help spread the message that annual physical health checks for people with SMI are important.

What the service offers

Our Champion Health Checks Service invites you to:

• Attend free online information sessions to understand the importance of physical health checks for people with SMI

• Become a community champion who can encourage clients, service users, friends or family members to book checks with their GP or local health centre

• Help us spread the word — you’ll receive materials and support to share social media posts, hold peer-groups or link up with local organisations

Who should get involved?

We welcome participation from:

• Members of the public interested in mental health and community wellbeing

• Staff and volunteers in charities, social care providers, voluntary groups

• Health professionals looking for a peer-champion role within community settings

• Friends, family-members or carers of someone with an SMI diagnosis

If you’re already working in the local community (Bexley, Kent, or beyond) and want to make a meaningful difference in physical health inclusion, this is for you.

How to get started

Joining is simple:

• Book a place on one of our free sessions

• Attend the session — learn about physical health risks, how to motivate take-up of checks, and tools/resources to use

• Receive our champion pack and get ready to engage your networks

• Encourage and support people in your community to ask their GP about a physical health check if they have an SMI diagnosis

The impact we envision

By building an army of community champions, we hope to:

• Improve uptake of annual physical health checks among people with SMI

• Reduce the gap in life-expectancy between those with severe mental illness and the general population

• Change perceptions — making physical health a standard part of mental health and wellbeing conversations

• Foster stronger links between mental health and physical health services, local charities and community networks

Our Champion Health Checks Service is more than just an awareness campaign — it’s a call-to-action. If you care about mental and physical health, if you believe all people deserve physical wellbeing, then this is your opportunity to champion change in our community.

Join us — become a champion, spread the word, and help make physical health checks standard and accessible for everyone with an SMI diagnosis.

If you have any queries or questions, please email: info@mindinbexley.org.uk