Across December 2021-May 2022, I teamed up again with creative consultant Tara Brown to work as critical friends/researchers for 2.8 Million Minds – a young people’s project commissioned by the Greater London Authority (GLA) and led by artist and mental health activist ‘the vacuum cleaner’ alongside Bernie Grant Arts Centre and Chisenhale Gallery.

2.8 Million Minds is a disability justice informed approach to how young Londoners can use art to begin to radically reimagine mental health support, justice and pride. The result of this work is A Manifesto for 2.8 Million Minds – Download here.

The project’s title references the 2,879,900 children and young people who live in London. Three artists - Becky Warnock, Tyreis Holder, and Yomi Ṣode were commissioned to collaborate with young people from Haringey and Tower Hamlets to imagine and develop an action plan for cultural activity to benefit all of London’s 2.8 million young minds. In parallel to these commissions were cross-sector discussions and network meetings with art and mental health practitioners, exploring what works and what needs to change.

Tara and I supported the project team, artists and participants involved to reflect on their learning, capture findings from cross-sector discussions and co-write the manifesto. The document is partly a reflection of what’s wrong with the current mental system, partly a set of demands, partly the learning from doing this work and partly a toolkit for doing this work better.

Photos: Nina Robinson