We spoke to Beth Deakin, who recently won a Platinum Champion Award for the Queen's Jubilee for her role volunteering for Project 14.
Beth tell us about her experience.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Beth Deakin, and I am 32 years old. I am a primary and secondary SEN teacher and Social Emotional and Mental Health practitioner, which means in term time, I am a very busy person! I am from the Dearne, currently living in Goldthorpe with my partner of 14 years, Jack and our very naughty Beagle Chris. I am very proud of my heritage and love where I live!
Tell us about Project 14.
I set up Project 14 (which is a community group) in 2017 after losing my best friend Ashley to suicide. He was my best friend from primary school, and he was more like my brother. His loss was unexpected and hit us all incredibly hard. We raised a lot of money for amazing mental health charities in the early days which made me think about how we could set up a group that fundraises, get people together and promote positive mental health and well-being that benefits our local area directly - some of the charities we fund raised for didn’t even have a regional office, never mind anything in Barnsley. We aim to fundraise, signpost and invest in our community. My best pal Thomas saw what I was starting to set up and supported me very early on. As a result of the love of the work we started and the social media platforms we set up, we were blessed to meet Gemma, who lives close to us and is a mental health practitioner and also helps us to run Project 14. The three of us run the group outside our full time jobs.
What is your role there, and how long have you done it?
I am the founder and chair of Project 14. I have run it for 5 years.
What made you want to get involved?
Honestly, I set up Project 14 just to help other people and to hopefully prevent others from feeling the grief I did when we lost Ashley. My mantra has always been if I can help one person, then it’s been a success. Hopefully we’ve done that! I couldn't bear the idea of people not finding the help they need!
Had you volunteered before?
As well as running Project 14, I am also one of the group facilitators of the support group SOBs (Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide). I went on the SoBs training just before the pandemic started and patiently waited to open the group for over a year! At last, I lead the first group in September 2021! We meet every month in Barnsley town centre and help those who have lost loved ones to suicide.
What does volunteering mean to you?
I know that volunteering has helped me through my grief for Ashley. I find it difficult to receive praise, as I know I benefit from helping others so much. One of the best remedies for my own mental health is to help my community - a place that makes me so proud to live. Sometimes, people find this hard to understand. But when the darkest moment of my life happened, when it felt like it would never get bright again, my community was there. That’s why I know Project 14 needs to be there.
How did you find out that you had won the Platinum Champion Award?
I was driving home from work when Darryl from the Dearne Area team rang me. He told me that he had nominated me a few months before, and he had received an email confirming I was one of the 400 winners selected across the country out of thousands nominated. At first, I couldn’t understand why I had won it! I didn’t feel worthy! But I think that was just the surprise of winning. What an amazing way to be acknowledged!
What did you get for the award?
I was entered in to multiple ballots to attend different events across the jubilee (meeting Prince of Wales, picnics, party at the palace). I then had to wait to see if I was drawn out for any of the events. I didn’t expect to get drawn out, but I was! I was given tickets to got to the Party at the Palace that was on the TV.
What has it been like since?
Lots of people have congratulated me and asked about the award. I was going to keep it a secret, but my parents and Tom and Gemma put it on our social media feeds. It’s been really lovely to feel the appreciation - maybe I just need to learn to accept it better!
You got to go to the party at the Palace, how was that experience?
It was an amazing event! Gemma and I travelled down to London and the buzz was incredible. You could feel that the historic events were happening, and you were one of a lucky few attending. It was quite surreal being enclosed in the concert grounds, looking back and seeing the Mall full of people! Plus, being so close to the Royal family!
What was the best bit?
I loved Alicia Keys, Diana Ross and Andrea Bocelli! The show was a mixture of acts, which was brill! And the lights on the palace were just amazing!!
We are sure you can see why Beth is a well deserved winner!
To find out more about the amazing work Beth and Project 14 do, you can visit their Facebook page here.
You can also find out more about the Barnsley Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide group that Beth spoke about here.
