Minds Matter Event concert raises £1,300 for West Sussex Mind

Around 90 people filled The Barn Theatre in Southwick last Friday night to hear local musicians perform live for a special concert themed around mental health.

The concert was organised by Courtney Everett from West Sussex Mind with her friend Neil Maguinness, who have known each other since school days. After hosting comedy and music nights together in their late teens and early twenties, Courtney and Neil set up a community organisation, called Minds Matter Event in 2022, and this is their second event raising funds for mental health.

Courtney, who is part of the social activities team and also provides one-to-one support with our Emotional Wellbeing service in GP surgeries, said that this event is extra special for her, because it is raising funds for the charity she works for:

“This year’s concert is very personal for me, because I work for West Sussex Mind. I was really excited that so many of my colleagues came along to support our event. I also know first-hand what the money can be used for and the transformative effect it can have,” she said.

[Top right to left: Daniel Lambert; Dan Norman; co-hosts Neil and Courtney. Bottom right to left: Sean McNally; founder and co-host, Courtney; Lemon Wax lead singer, Miguel Cosme. Photos courtesy of Luke Perrett]

The concert featured performances from four local bands, with different music styles, who had volunteered to perform to support local people’s mental health. These were garage rock band, Hybrid Kid; psychedelic pop outfit, Lemon Wax; solo artist, Daniel Lambert performing with his new band; and alternative rock band, iamwarface.

The evening also included a speech from – and an interview with – people who have used West Sussex Mind services about their own mental health struggles and how getting help has been transformative for them. Both of these people are now either staff members or volunteers with West Sussex Mind and their testimonials were very moving. Our head of children, young people and family services, Kim Anthony, also spoke about the current high demand for mental health support, particularly among young people, and highlighted how this kind of fundraising event can make a difference to our work.

Courtney and Neil had several objectives in putting on this evening of music in aid of West Sussex Mind. “I wanted to create a fun event that brings awareness about mental health but also raises funds for mental health services,” said Courtney. “Even if someone just came along and picked up a leaflet, it might help them to reach out for support if they need it in the future – but without being too in your face. So the concert is a way of making mental health support accessible, while helping people to look after their mental well-being by having fun on the night.”

[Top left to right: iamwarface bass player, Eric Bc Tape; iamwarface lead singer, Matt Warneford; guest speaker, Kit Dunstan. Bottom left to right: Kim Anthony from West Sussex Mind with co-host, Neil; Hybrid Kid lead, Danny Lloyd; Lemon Wax guitarist, Hall Hammond. Photos courtesy of Luke Perrett]

As well as the monies raised through ticket sales, the concert also featured a raffle with prizes donated by Brighton-based Bincho Yakitori and Shoreham-based The Cricketers Pub and Bake Out. It raised £1,300 for our charity, which will help us to support more adults and young people in the communities we serve.

Courtney concluded: “Despite some technical difficulties on the night, we had an amazing evening and are so proud of the artists who performed for us and the speakers who shared their stories. I am thankful to the whole Minds Matter Event team for helping me to make this happen and to all my colleagues at West Sussex Mind who supported this event.”

Our wholehearted thanks go to Courtney and Neil for organising the concert, the whole team involved in making it happen and all the amazing artists who performed on the night. Thank you to Luke Perrett for his photos.