Mental health charity Teac Tom with service in Laois "in crisis"

The founder of a local mental health charity has issued an emotive plea to people for financial support to keep its doors open.

Last year, more than 4,000 counselling sessions and emergency interventions were delivered by Kilkenny-based mental health charity, Teac Tom which operates in Laois and officially opened a Counselling Centre in Stradbally in 2021.

It was founded almost 10 years ago by Angela Hayes following the death of her husband, Tommy and son, Thomas to suicide.

Now the charity, which sees more than 100 people pass through their doors every week, is in crisis and in danger of closing unless they can secure long-term funding from the Government.

Angela Hayes circulated an email in recent days appealing to people for help and also made an appeal for support on social media.

“This is a very hard letter for me to write, but I have decided I have no option,” begins the email.

Ms Hayes is employed as CEO of the charity and Rory Connellan as Clinical Services Manager, both are full-time roles with an additional 12 counselling and administration part-time roles. The charity is reliant on fundraising and donations and receives some funding from the local authority but no funding from government departments to cover its running costs.

“We have two months left to cover the running costs of the charity and we have had to put an exit strategy in place. The public are desperate to keep this service,” Ms Hayes said.

“Teac Tom is in crisis — we have funds to take us through to the end of June and then that is it. We need help, pure and simple. We need to pay our rent, our salaries and our bills to enable us to keep our house open, and from the end of June we will not, barring a miracle, be able to do this.

“This organisation means everything to me because I know that we are needed. I see it reflected every day in the eyes of those who pluck up the courage and come to us to admit that they need help.

“Built on passion, good intentions and community support, we have evolved to become a key service provider for post-suicide counselling that actively saves lives by tackling the radiating power that a suicide can create in a family, friend group, school or community.

“We do this through group and individual counselling services of the highest professional standard.
“But passion, good intentions and community support can’t continue to pay the rent, and the counsellors, and the bills, not forever.”

Ms Hayes is also appealing to the Minister for Mental Health Mary Butler, Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman and the Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys to intervene and to secure long term funding to cover the running costs of the charity.

“We are now recognised experts in post-suicide care for the community, and suicide intervention with a tried and tested model and a reputation for the highest standards of service delivery.

“We are an indispensable part of the landscape of mental health services and we are calling on the government to recognise this and to support us in a meaningful way that will allow us continue our work.”

“Thank you so much for all the donations, offers of help and calls of support this week. Together, we can and we will,” she posted on social media.

For more, see thomashayestrust.com.