THE BROTHER of tragic Gareth Blakely has welcomed news of a new Mental Health facility in North Ayrshire.

Roy Blakely today said the news that the Scottish Association for Mental health (SAMH) had upgraded and re-launched their local facility to allow more people to access it was a ‘step in the right direction’.

Roy’s 23-year-old brother Gareth, from Kilwinning, passed away on November 6 after mistakenly swallowing too many prescription tablets.

Despite being renowned for his the fun-loving personality, Gareth had also developed some personal struggles in adulthood which led to him needing a little bit of extra support to help him deal with things.

His family finally have been left devastated by his death and since losing him have been fundraising for SAMH - a charity which was close to Gareth’s heart.

Now the news that SAMH have launched a new and improved service to provide even more local residents with mental health problems, the support they need has been praised by the family.

Roy, 27, said: “This is a huge step in the right direction. Obviously if they are able to help more people then that can only be a good thing.” The service is called ‘Positive Steps’ and is at 21 Station Road, Stevenston which is funded by North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership.

The service, named Positive Steps -formerly known as Buccleuch Clubhouse and Community Horizons -, will expand on SAMH resources already available in North Ayrshire to include tailored one-to-one support based on individual needs and will provide the tools people need to seek and sustain volunteering and employment opportunities, and help prevent social exclusion in the local community.

Positive Steps will also develop peer support groups to enable people who use the service to learn from each other’s experience, share that experience and strengthen people to make a positive change.

By giving people access to activities within their communities, they can get to know more people which can boost confidence; nurture personal interests and improve quality of life.

The service was officially launched at a ceremony this week and included supporters of SAMH, Margaret Burgess MSP, Senior Management from North Ayrshire Council, Senior Management of Ayrshire and Arran NHS Community Mental Health Team.

A brief introduction was given by Susan Forrest, SAMH Community Business Manager for North Ayrshire, followed by a networking lunch.

Susan Forrest said: “The Positive Steps model is based on helping people with mental health problems take advantage of the same opportunities as anyone else.

“We will use all resources afforded to us through local partnerships and SAMH’s exclusive Tools for Living programme to improve the personal fulfilment of those who can benefit from our support in North Ayrshire.” North Ayrshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care, Councillor Anthea Dickson, said: “I’m pleased that our funding will provide some of the most vulnerable members of our community with a bespoke service that enables them to develop and flourish in North Ayrshire.

“The service redesign has been delivered through partnership working with the North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership and SAMH with the needs of service users at the heart of every decision.”