Unlocking Potential in Sheffield

Unlocking Potential was a three-year initiative funded by the Department of Health. The aim of the initiative was to develop employment services led by mental health service users in two communities. One of the basic precepts of Unlocking Potential in Sheffield is therefore that people should not be written off by others or themselves. In Sheffield, Unlocking Potential set about establishing a peer support group to promote employment, voluntary activities and training. The support network that has been constructed among members is very important. It isn’t a link between the individual members of the group, although there may be specific bonds that tie them together. Rather, it is the intergroup dynamics that allow a person to feel that they can contact any member of the group if they feel they need support. This means that, at all times, support is only a telephone call away.