We’re delighted to be able to share a short film created by young people in Barnsley, which highlights the importance of working through emotional issues as early as possible, to support their mental and physical health in the future.

The film, called Beyond Reflection#We’re in this Together, illustrates the different issues young people face and how reaching out for support as well as supporting each other can help.

It was developed as part of a piece of analysis work being undertaken by our Public Health Children and Young People team and South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, exploring services we have for emotional wellbeing and mental health. 

Creating the animated film is a partnership between CYP Public Health and Barnsley College’s game design department, with involvement also from the Youth Association and Chrissy Sykes, creator of the My Body is My Body Foundation.

Over the past six months, a group of young people aged between 13 and 18 met regularly to share ideas for the production and content.

Teresa Brocklehurst, Children and Young People’s Emotional Health and Wellbeing Lead, headed up the project, and says: “The animation was something I wanted to develop to set the analysis work in context, as I thought it would be a creative way of demonstrating some of the issues children and young people face. The animation shows that young people have a myriad of issues, even though an individual may think they are the only one experiencing difficulties.

“It gives a clear message that it’s good for young people to share and support each other. As well as showing the range of issues a young person may face, it also suggests some coping mechanisms, to illustrate that there are a range of methods to build emotional and mental health resilience.”

The animation can be viewed at: https://bit.ly/3TB3JEW