The Westvale Community Centre (WCC) has embraced the Blue Tree Project, turning a once ordinary tree into a symbol of mental health awareness.
The initiative, to foster conversations about mental health, has seen blue trees cropping up across the globe.
The blue transformation of the tree is a conversation starter for people visiting the WCC, and a reminder that, ‘It’s OK to not be OK’.
Recognising the need to raise awareness among children, often an overlooked cohort in mental health discussions, the WCC organised the project for kids aged five to 11 during the school holidays.
Children participated in activities focused on understanding and managing big emotions and feelings. The session also delved into coping strategies and the concept of the “helping hand,“ where kids listed adults they could turn to on each finger.
The hands-on involvement extended to physically painting the blue tree and planter boxes. To reinforce the theme of using hands and coping strategies, children left their handprints all over the planter boxes. The transformed space at the WCC is now a focal point, designed to spark conversations about mental health for all ages.
