Mental health arts festival draws in record audiences

THIS year’s Lothian Mental Health Arts and Film Festival saw record audiences, with more than double the number of visitors than last year.

Around 1500 people attended more than 40 events throughout October including screenings of films tackling issues such as dementia and the mental health of military veterans.

NHS Lothian’s strategic programme manager for mental health and wellbeing, Linda Irvine, said: “It’s wonderful to see the festival continuing to grow in popularity and I would urge anyone who is interested in getting involved in next years festival to get in touch.

“The feedback we’ve received has been fantastic. The programme this year, which owes much to the hard work of our partner organisations, touched on a wide range of issues which I’m sure will have benefited so many peopl.

“The arts offer a great platform to tackle the stigma which mental health issues often attract.”