01/06/2026
2 years & 1 day into the journey of Silence Speaks, & having developed from a Counselling service into a fully fledged 1 person Mental Health Service, people often now ask โwhat Silence Speaks actually is?โ.
It sort of has โsomeโ structure, with the top part being Silence Speaks the brand, then underneath that there are 4 sub-brands (Counselling, Up, Blogs & Shop) that serve different purposes, but following that, I often struggle to contextualise it any further.
So, I felt that following the 2 year anniversary of developing a new alternative mental health service that is growing at a rate that both continues to surprise me, & fill me with gratitude each day, I wanted to share what June looks like for myself & Silence Speaks.
We begin the month with a visit to The University of South Wales to support Dr. Klรกra Price & her โPower to the Dadโsโ Project, that is bringing together up to 40 organisations, including the incredible & truly inspiring JSG Health for Dads, to collectively identify 5 key priorities for supporting dadsโ wellbeing in Wales as part of the newly formed Dadโs Wellbeing Research Network (DAWRN).
This will be followed by a much anticipated 1:1 with Samantha Alice Jones, to discuss the potential to collaborate further as we move toward the midway point of 2026.
Later in June I will be again working with Andrew Butcher & his incredible team of trustees & team members at Taff-Ely Foodbank to discuss how we can support the implementation of a better informed & more understanding & collectively empathetic approach, to the challenges faced by the service users of this fundamental community service.
On June 17th I will be visiting 4Minds in support of their inspirational & motivational evening at Ebbw Vale Sports Centre with their Empowermen Project. With 4Minds now empowering men through their events across Wales, I look forward to working toward the potential of collaborating together to speak at one of their future events later this year in Rodney Parade Newport (more to follow).
The will then be celebrating their 1st birthday on June 19th at St Davids Hotel Cardiff, where as a group we will all be getting together to celebrate the wonderful work that Dawn Evans has undertaken over these past 12 months. What started out as a vision for a better approach to Mental Health & Wellbeing in Cardiff, has grown into a UK Wide movement, spanning Wales, England, & Northern Ireland so far, with groups now popping up in cities & counties across Wales, to bring voices from across each valley & city together.
The month of June closes with 3 days that Iโm counting down each of the next 34,560 minutes to, which is working together again with Kyle Stead Creative & Informed Arts with a host of writers, producers, & wonderful creatives, to work on the R&D of a new production following the immeasurable & invaluable success that was & still is, No Manโs Land.
In between this we have the potential onboarding of 2 new clients & 22 sessions with current clients to deliver, so plenty of walks, talks, & working towards goals & client outcomes, that I truly value the most.
If anything, Silence Speaks is a lived experience service that delivers lessons learnt from the wonderful ambassadors of mental health that work across Wales & beyond, to bring together the best possible experience for the people that make the entire service possible, my Counselling clients. I can only continue to deliver what I do on a wider basis through the ongoing support of people that put their trust in my qualities as a counsellor, & for that, I will always be grateful. Thank you, above all, for allowing me to build what Silence Speaks has become.
I often speak in weโs, but this post was a little more about me. Partly because all of this has now grown to a point that whatever it is, is now much bigger than 1 personโs experience. If this past year has taught me anything itโs that together I am you, & you are we ๐
For future collaborations, with a mental health & wellbeing service built upon the lived experience of an ever growing community, please feel free to drop me an email at [email protected] or book in a 1:1 in the comments below ๐
Take Care, Steven.
