A campaign to improve mental health and wellbeing of Londoners came to the Tube in Hounslow .

Thrive LDN is a citywide movement from the London Assembly supported by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan , aiming to raise awareness of mental health issues, challenge stigmas and encourage Londoners to look after their mental health.

Following on from a successful problem solving session in Hounslow Town Centre, Hounslow Police were out in force on the Piccadilly line as part of the Thrive LDN campaign on Friday July 14.

The booths popped up on the tube on Friday (July 14)

The campaign involved a series of 'problem solving booths' appearing on Tube trains.

Joining forces with Transport for London , British Transport Police and West London Mental Health Trust alongside other local organisations, those involved were encouraging people to both share and assist others with any problems they may have.

Hounslow police constable, Lou Roberts, said: "We are so pleased to be part of this great collaboration.

"We hosted the first Problem Solving Booth in the Met a few months ago in the Town Centre in Hounslow with Owls, Hounslow Council and the NHS which enabled us to forge great new relationships.

"We discovered that it was a great way to engage with our community on a street level where we were able to swap roles and ask for help.

"Taking the Problem Solving Booth on the Tube was a great honour for us and and an excellent example of joint working."

The concept was created by Owls, a group with a vision to ensure communities are listened to and looked to for solution.

Police officers shared their problems

It aims to bring members of the community together to engage in conversations they might not usually have, by sharing problems.

Dr Charlie Howard, director of Owls said: "Solutions to mental health lie with listening to communities and building solutions with them and the PSBs enabled people to talk to each other who wouldn’t usually talk to each, helping to break down barriers by helping each other with their problems."

How does the concept work?

According to the London Assembly, two million Londoners will experience mental ill health this year and only 25% of people with mental health issues will get treatment.

Individuals were encouraged to swap seats to both help and be helped

The Problem Solving Booths encourage anyone and everyone to share their problems or help others, and on the Tube, local police officers were among those sharing their problems with members of the public.

Setting up on the Piccadilly line between Hounslow West and Acton Town, pop up booths which were designed by Goldsmiths, University of London students, were placed on seats on the train.

Goldsmiths, University of London students designed the booths

One chair is for the "helper" who will listen to the problem, while the other chair is for the "helped" who will share any concerns they may have.

Individuals are encouraged to swap roles and a board beside the chairs is present for people to leave their ideas about things which could help their communities with stress.

Following on from the success of the booths, Hounslow Police plan to take the concept in to other areas in the community.

Police constable Roberts added: "The day was a huge success and we look forward to working towards another Problem Solving Booth in the borough in the future".

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