About
About 12th Man
Men and mental health
When a football team is playing well and winning, the crowd is usually happy and creates a positive atmosphere. However, the team needs them more when they are struggling for form. This is when the 12th Man is most important.
The 12th Man campaign provides Mental Health First Aid training to trades and interest groups, to encourage men to ‘Be The 12th Man’ for their friends, family and colleagues.
75% of all suicides in the UK are men
780
people have taken MHFA courses with 12th Man
4,891 men took their own lives in 2022
England & Wales 4179, Scotland 556, N Ireland 156
The 12th Man campaign is built upon the positive values of a football crowd. It encourages men to show emotions and not hide them. It asks men to help each other to tackle the stigma around mental health, and to offer unconditional support when it’s needed most: when they are struggling to cope and finding life difficult. It empowers men to talk about mental health more openly, more often and without stigma or prejudice.
4127 men died of drug related causes in 2022
England & Wales 3240, Scotland 692, N Ireland 195
73% of people who 'go missing' are men
7416 men died of alcohol related causes in 2022
England & Wales 6348, Scotland 836, N Ireland 232
Help us improve Men's Mental Health
Take our Men and Mental Health Survey
Help us to understand more about men and mental health
Take our Training 12th Man Survey
If you have done training with us, please tell us about it
Where we work
We are currently funded to deliver campaign activities, including Mental Health First Aid training, in Norfolk & Waveney, Suffolk and East Cheshire. We are offering the training only to those who are working in the trades we focus on, or who are part of clubs and societies based around our key interests.
All our training will be delivered online at present due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We will offer a range of times and days for these courses.
Work with us
The 12th Man offers training, coaching and support for local businesses and interest groups who want to help men talk more about mental health. We help businesses and clubs become better teams, and we are steadily creating a network of trained individuals who know what is means to 'Be The 12th Man' when it comes to mental health. Our campaign helps these businesses, clubs and individuals to work together, and help turn our campaign into a movement.
We are are currently operating in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cheshire East. Although we are working in these funded areas we want to grow the campaign in communities across the UK. If you would like to get involved in the campaign and you are in a different region then get in touch and we can have a chat.
Commission us
We are currently delivering projects for Norfolk County Council and Colchester Catalyst. We want to grow the campaign in new locations and would be happy to talk to local authorities, public health and NHS teams in other areas of the country to grow the campaign.
We would also be keen to speak to large businesses or groups who fit the profile of the 12th Man either by employing or engaging large numbers of men, or selling products and services to men as the main or key demographic.
Partner with us
We are beginning to develop partnerships with businesses and organisations that have regional or national reach. If you are a business who wants to sponsor or commission us we would be looking to partner with you to help the campaign raise awareness.
We are also developing our links with our community locations to create lead partners at a local level. If you are a club or business and join the campaign by completing training, you could become a lead partner for the 12th Man. Contact us if you are interested in having a chat.
Sponsor us
We are keen to grow the campaign with businesses and organisations who can sponsor elements of it. by working with us businesses can help us reach the wider community within their specialist field. As we grow we will need to increase our presence online, and we would be open to working with sponsors in order to achieve this. If you would like to sponsor the campaign please get in touch.
Fund us
We are also funded for our work in Suffolk through Suffolk Community Foundation, and have had great support in our early years by Norfolk Community Foundation. We understand the process of applying for funds and are often writing bids. We are open to talk to any funders who may have funding we could apply to. If you are a funder from another area and like what we are doing please get in touch.
264m people around the world live with depression
1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health problem at some point in life
179m working days were lost due to depression, stress or anxiety in 2019/20
Why not drop us a line? Get in touch
