Sunderland Echo wins national award for armed forces mental health campaign

Our parent company’s JPIMedia Investigations team, which included the Echo’s Gavin Ledwith, has earned a Mind Media Award for its Veterans in Crisis campaign in 2018.

This saw titles from across the group unite to highlight a lack of support for ex-service personnel experiencing post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression.

The Government had been accused of turning a blind eye to the issue, with the campaign revealing that the UK did not monitor the number of veterans taking their lives, unlike allies such as the USA, Canada and Australia.

Articles and personal testimonies from veterans and their families ran in the Echo, sister titles such as the Shields Gazette as well as nationwide publications such as The i and The Scotsman.

We also highlighted the work of organisations such as Veterans in Crisis Sunderland (VICS) in helping veterans tackle issues such as “survivor’s guilt” and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The Government subsequently announced a raft of improved support measures and a major study into veteran suicides, with charities crediting the JPIMedia investigation for prompting the changes.

Tim Robinson, group content development director at JPIMedia, said: “We are really grateful to receive this award, it’s a vindication of the all the hard work put in by our investigations reporting team.

“Mental health issues among military veterans are not given the attention they deserve and the hidden epidemic of suicides in this community is a national scandal which demands to be recognised and tackled.

“We are very grateful to Mind, and most importantly, to the ex-servicemen and their families who shared their many painful stories with our reporters in the course of this investigation - stories which had deep emotional resonance with our readers across the UK.”

Our articles included an interview with former soldier Chris Batty, from Seaburn, who openly spoke about how he had hit “rock bottom” through binge drinking before contacting VICS and rebuilding his life.

VICS’ work has continued throughout 2019 with its Emergency Rendezvous centre officially opening in Roker Avenue on Remembrance Day.

Other winners at London’s Southbank Centre included actor David Harewood, who opened up about his mental health in BBC documentary Psychosis and Me, and ITV’s Lorraine Kelly for her taboo-breaking Shine a Light campaign.