Black Students Talk x King's College London SU: Safe Space for Mental Health, Study Guides, Projects, Research of Design

Download Black Students Talk x King's College London SU: Safe Space for Mental Health and more Study Guides, Projects, Research Design in PDF only on Docsity! 1 SEPTEMBER 29 Black People Talk CIC Authored by: Nkasi Stoll (Co-Founder and Director of Black People Talk CIC; PhD Candidate at King’s College London); and Yannick Yalipende (Co-Founder and Director of Black People Talk CIC) Edited by: Julia Haas (Student Wellbeing and Welfare Manager at KCLSU) Black Students Talk x King’s College London Students Union Report 2020/21 2 About Black Students Talk x King’s College London Student Union Black People Talk Black People Talk (BPT) is a community interest company that was established in 2019 by Yannick Yalipende and Nkasi Stoll to provide safe spaces for Black students to be brave and talk about their mental health. Since then, BPT has opened up to education institutions, places of work, and in the community. BPT works in collaboration with Black people, and allies, to reduce mental health inequality in access to appropriate support. Black Student Talk Black Students Talk (BST) is a mental health and wellbeing peer support group for and by Black university students. Black students come together to listen, learn, and support each other's mental health and wellbeing. The aims of BST are to: Why Black Students Talk at King’s College London? The Black King's College London (KCL) student community have had to survive racism, discrimination, and harassment whilst simultaneously being expected to thrive as students. In addition, many Black students are collectively grieving the disappearances and murders of Black people around the world; and Challenge Challenge the unhelpful narratives around Black students and their mental health. Unpack Unpack the lived experiences and life events that shape the mental health and wellbeing of Black students in the UK. Awareness Increase awareness and understanding around UK Black student mental health and wellbeing . Support Support the mental health and wellbeing of Black students by provi ding them with the tools needed to advocate for themselves 5 - Facilitators met and learnt from mental health organisations and professionals around the UK; - BST provided training on presentation skills, CV building, networking; - Weekly supervision from a Black Counselling Psychologist • Be a part of a national initiative - Chance to work with, learn from, and share their knowledge with Black students from other universities across the UK. - Facilitators gained a greater sense of belonging – (1) between the facilitators, (2) with the KCL/KCLSU community, and (3) the wider Black student community. • BST facilitators received paid work until end of July 2021 Benefits of BST x Student Space for KCLSU • National recognition and shared learning - KCLSU branding on BST workshops alongside Student Space and Student Minds as collaborators and sponsors of BST; - BST is the first group of its kind. The collaboration provided the first nationally available digital support group explicitly for Black students in the UK. This provides national recognition of the BST x KCLSU collaboration as a potential gold standard for Black student mental health and wellbeing support; • Global recognition and shared learning - Anniversary of Black Lives Matter global coincided with BST x Student Space, so the programme brought global attraction. Global community is important for KCL/KCLSU especially for the international Black student community. - BST collaborated with global networks e.g. Black in Mental Health, Disabled in Higher Ed. This provided KCLSU and BST with future potential collaborations. • Funding - BST funded BST x KCLSU from April 2021 onwards. • Benefits for KCL students / KCLSU members - Sessions were run weekly so KCL students got more frequent support from KCLSU BST x KCLSU feedback Feedback collection method To understand how Black KCL students describe their experiences of attending or facilitating BST x KCLSU, BST designed an online qualitative survey and focus group topic guide to elicit students' feedback. Attendees and facilitators were invited to complete the survey after every session. Thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke 2006) was conducted by Nkasi Stoll on the student’s feedback which has been summarized below using illustrative quotes. 6 BST x KCLSU Attendee Feedback Importance of BST being black only Attendees spoke about the importance of BST being for and by Black university students only so they can discuss Black issues that affect them inside and outside of KCL, safely, without potential repercussions. Students highlighted that KCL is one of the few universities that has a safe space for Black students to be brave and get mental health support from each other in a structured supportive setting. It’s really great to be given the opportunity to talk unfiltered. So many universities don't have mental health support specifically for black students so having this support group at Kings has been really helpful. Being able to talk about things are very specific to us Black people including very sensitive subjects around in- community issues. Supportive community Attendees spoke about the importance of BST existing for Black students who do not have a supportive community at KCL. This was especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown and true for KCL students who were in their first year of university and those who felt different from other Black students. It was so good to meet different students because outside of the ACS [African Caribbean Society], if the ACS isn't your jam, then you're kind of alone. They are incredible! Just what I needed as a black King's student, the sessions have been the one thing making me feel as though I'm still a part of the King's community during this pandemic. Students spoke about the racism they face being a Black student at KCL and how racial discrimination and stereotyping can impact on a Black students’ mental health and wellbeing. They felt that BST gives them rest bite from the unsupportive KCL community. Many students spoke about feeling liberated, relieved and at peace after attending BST session(s). I feel like I had a weight being lifted off my shoulders, it’s really nice to receive support from black peers. The thing that's annoying is that we always have to be the bigger person, we have to hide our anger because then we’re depicted as like the angry black woman or the angry black person and that is damaging for us….I’m not alone and my feelings and thoughts are very valid and supported by others. Relief, a liberating space to speak and listen. Being heard, feeling seen Students spoke about BST providing the first and/or only space at KCL where they were able to get mental health and wellbeing support from other Black students without fear of judgement or being 7 misunderstood or gaslight by White or other racially minoritized KCL staff and/or students. One student said that BST provides a space for the voiceless. BST provides a space for the voiceless, it was so great to be heard and I just really enjoyed hearing other’s perspectives and just listening for a change. BST is a safe space where you are accepted unconditionally and you know there will be no judgement, no denial, no gaslighting which is our every day experience as a Black KCL student. It was the first time I felt like I had a safe space to discuss issues with my mental health and well-being with the acknowledgment of how being black affects my experiences. Building mentally healthy Black students Attendees felt BST provided the space for them to grow in their self-esteem, self-worth and self-love, through community support. Many students mentioned that they are doing more things to look after their mental health since going to BST including reading recommended self-help books, signing up to therapy, pursuing a mental health diagnosis and treatment. I hope every Black student gets the chance to access BST, for all the things I've gained, and then some. The facilitators are always fantastic, and the sense of community I've literally not been able to get anywhere else is much needed. I've started standing up for myself more and looking after my mental health day in day out. Even if you feel you have a handle on being black in the UK, there's always more to learn, which is more ways to grow your self-confidence, compassion, and self. BST x KCLSU Facilitator Feedback Giving back to the community The facilitators spoke positively about the opportunity to support other Black KCL students in a way they wish they had been supported when they were younger. I really like the opportunity to give back to my community, but in a way that allows me to be a part of the conversation. I like how I get to interact with all different kinds of black students, and recognising intersectionality. I enjoy being able to create the space I wish I had as a UG. Supporting others The opportunity to support other Black students to share their stories, sometimes for the first time, with other Black students was discussed as a personal benefit to facilitating BST. Facilitators discussed feeling a sense of pride and joy for being able to help students on their mental health journey. Facilitators also spoke of the encouraging and supportive attendees who, with the facilitators, helped to create a safe and brave space for Black students to share their mental health and wellbeing concerns. 10 who hear voices. The BST x KCLSU facilitators fed back that the free 3 hour training was helpful for their personal and professional knowledge and understanding of psychosis and psychotic-like experiences. BST hopes to provide further CPD opportunities for BST x KCLSU facilitators. Speaking engagements BST x KCLSU facilitators were given the paid opportunity to present at the AMOSHEE conference on ‘Creating an anti-racist culture’ in higher education as part of Stephen Lawrence Day. The facilitators were trained and supported by BST to present their experience and learning facilitating BST. The facilitators also got the opportunity to network with leading experts and professionals in student services. On the anniversary of George Floyd’s murder BST x KCLSU facilitators were invited to design and facilitate a workshop for KCL staff on anti-racism at KCL. The facilitators received glowing praise from senior members of academic and professional staff at KCL and enabled them to develop their skills facilitating workshops to staff. Recommendations for academic year 2021/22 • Continue running BST at KCL for the benefit of all Black KCL students. Budget for BST x KCLSU training, reflective practice, prep time before sessions, and BST content. • Offer facilitators reflective practice with a trainee or qualified Black mental health and supervision with the BST Director (Yannick Yalipende), depending on the needs of the facilitators. • Continue sessions as fortnightly or monthly (depending on resources). • Continue asking for session-by-session feedback from attendees to monitor what works, what doesn’t work, and what needs to be changed about BST x KCLSU. This will help ensure the programme continues to meet the needs of Black KCL students. • Create a video of Black students’ experiences either attending or facilitating BST x KCLSU to encourage students who may be nervous to attend BST or just want to know more about the programme. • Consider whether to offer BST x KCLSU online, in-person, or a combination of the two; depending on resources. Conclusions Black Students Talk at King’s College London Student Union (BST x KCLSU) provides Black students at KCL a community to (i) challenge the unhelpful narratives around Black students and their mental health; (ii) unpack the lived experiences and life events that shape the mental health and wellbeing of Black students in the UK; (iii) increase awareness and understanding around UK Black student mental 11 health and wellbeing and (iv) support the mental health and wellbeing of Black students by providing them with the tools needed to advocate for themselves. For all Black students who attended or facilitated BST x KCLSU over the academic year 2020/21, BST was reported as a safe, supportive, validating space for them to give and receive mental health and wellbeing support to and from other Black students. Collecting and analysing session-by-session feedback from BST attendees and facilitators will help us learn about the impact, effectiveness, and value of BST over the next academic year to help us improve the programme and make resourcing decisions that are in the students’ best interests. The report highlights the importance of BST being designed, developed, delivered, and evaluated by and for Black KCL students. Attendees and facilitators feel a sense of ownership over BST x KCLSU, which adds value to the effectiveness of the programme. BST and KCLSU need to continue to work together to provide effective mental health and wellbeing peer support for Black KCL students.