Black Mental Health UK wins EBR Award 2012

Human rights campaign group Black Mental Health UK (BMH UK) has won this year’s Ebony Business & Recognition Award (EBR Awards 2012) for its outstanding work in the area of health, care and wellbeing.

Honouring the work led by BMH UK’s director Matilda MacAttram, the campaign group won the award during a black tie affair attended by hundreds of black business owners across the capital at the Regent Banqueting Hall in Finchley in London.

Black Mental Health UK is the only agency working in the area of public policy with a focus on the treatment and care of people from Britain’s African Caribbean communities. BMH UK was voted the winner out of nine other black-led organisations working in the area of health care and wellbeing.

Selected by the public who voted online for this year’s winners, the award ceremony honoured winners across 18 separate categories including, Health Care and Wellbeing, Education, Training, Youth Services and Superstar Entrepreneurs.

The EBR Awards were established to celebrate black and ethnic minority business entrepreneurs in the UK. The work of this award is to draw attention to and recognise the best in businesses from the community as well as honouring and promoting success, innovation and ethics within black businesses.

Matilda MacAttram founder and director of Black Mental Health UK said:

Winning this year’s EBR Award is a great honour, especially when you know that it was achieved by the public vote.'

She went on to say,

Data showing that 61% of those who lose their lives while detained by the state are mental health service users makes it is clear that this is a dangerous dynamic which needs to change. The acknowledgement of BMH UK’s work by EBR Awards is a great honour and confirms the need to have an agency that works at raising awareness about the treatment of one of society’s most marginalised groups.'

Francine Fernandes, Assistant Director of Operation Black Vote said,

The important work that BMH UK does in addressing the stigma of mental health and also of raising the profile of the disproportionate numbers of detentions of BME individuals cannot be overestimated. Having worked with Matilda for many years, I know that she works tirelessly and selflessly to campaign for greater accountability for the treatment which mental health service users receive and the award is richly deserved.'

Staff Reporter