Wellingborough mental health charity We Mind & Kelly Matters in cash boost as former England and Arsenal captain backs BK8 donation

Thousands of pounds have been donated to a Wellingborough charity supporting mental health awareness and suicide prevention.

Online gambling company BK8 has pledged cash to charity We Mind & Kelly Matters to support its vital work.

As part of its ongoing campaign to help raise awareness about mental health and well-being issues the company has donated another £2,500, which will help the charity continue its critical work.

We Mind & Kelly Matters was formed in 2019 after the death by suicide of Wellingborough woman Kelly Hewitt

Kelly’s sister Amy Hewitt said: “We are delighted to receive another amazing donation from BK8. This money will help make such a difference to so many people’s lives.

“It is vitally important to be able to offer immediate access to professional counsellors for those that need urgent help and support. This latest donation will help save lives and enable the charity to continue helping many more people and their families. It is fantastic to have the ongoing support of BK8.”

This month, fundraisers for We Mind & Kelly Matters used pedal power to successfully complete a monumental charity cycling challenge called the ‘Loneliest Road’, riding thousands of miles across Europe and the US.

The cycling challenge was completed on World Mental Health Day in October, following a mammoth ride across America to raise awareness and funds for the charity.

We Mind & Kelly Matters patron, former England football forward and BK8 ambassador Kelly Smith, welcomed news of the donation.

She said: “It is fantastic to see BK8 continuing to provide such incredible support to the charity, which I am privileged and honoured to be a patron of.

“I am a big advocate of mental health awareness, I have had challenges in the past and found strength in being able to share my struggles with someone, it’s so important to talk and reach out to people if you are feeling down or low. It’s time we started taking our mental health as seriously as we take our physical health.”

It is estimated that about 7,000 people in the UK take their own life each year and We Mind & Kelly Matters strives to help those most in need in a variety of ways.

The latest cash boost will help fund counselling sessions. A previous £15,000 donation enabled We Mind & Kelly Matters to set up a vital live chat service, allowing anyone with mental health challenges to speak to a professionally trained counsellor.

Newly-announced BK8 ambassador, former England and Arsenal captain, Faye White, added: “It is amazing BK8 is able to provide so much support for all the fantastic work We Mind & Kelly Matters does. This latest donation is just one of the ways BK8 is helping numerous community charities, which are providing vital help to so many people in so many ways.”

BK8 European managing director Michael Gatt said: “We are pleased to be able to continue our support for We Mind & Kelly Matters; the work the charity carries out is incredibly important and impacts so many lives.”