Witton Lodge Community Association, in partnership with Birmingham MIND, will be co-ordinating and delivering the six-week course which starts on Tuesday July 30th.

With statistics revealing almost a quarter of a million UK residents are suffering from anxiety-based disorders, the issue of mental health remains wide awake in the national consciousness. Wellbeing officer at Witton Lodge Community Association, Fauzia Begum, said it is important that people empower themselves to deal with the challenges posed by emotional stress.

“Good mental health provides a sense of wellbeing and confidence which enables you to enjoy all aspects of life,” she said. “It promotes a positive attitude towards other people, your environment and your relationships, allowing you to flourish so that you benefit in your daily life.

“Poor mental health has the capacity to destroy all that. This is why it is so important to understand how you can exercise control over your emotional wellbeing, how you can stop yourself from falling from light into darkness and how you can recognise the triggers which cause poor mental health so you can take charge of situations before they undermine you.”

Statistics provided by mental health charity MIND reveal the scale of the problem in this country. Figures show:

• 5.9 out of every 100 people suffer with generalised anxiety disorder
• 3.3 out of every 100 people suffer with depression
• 2.4 out of every 100 people suffer from phobias
• 1.3 in every 100 people suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• 7.8 in every 100 people suffer with mixed anxiety and depression

“We all need to be aware of our own mental health and take the same level of care with it as we do our physical health,” added Fauzia.