Arch provides peer-led support, mentoring and resources to empower young people in becoming more confident, courageous and clued-up on life's fundamental challenges.
Arch was set up as a direct response to the needs of the community. Waiting lists for mental health and other formal support services in Cornwall are lengthy. As a group, statistics show that young women have had the highest decline in mental health since COVID. This means that, coupled with the social pressures they face, it's incredibly important that there are different support avenues available to them. Our service is free, and is also completely peer-led, which makes it a lot easier for young people to engage with us in an accessible and time-conscious way.
Arch provides a great first step for people who don’t feel like they have reached the stage of needing professional therapy, or are nervous about reaching out to more formal support services.
We work directly with the community, through links with local schools, as well as directly with young people via our social media platforms. Anyone can reach out to Arch for free support, our aim is to make sure our services are visible and accessible to anyone who may benefit from them.
Arch has been designed primarily for women and non-binary people between the ages of 16 and 25, but we absolutely do not limit our services beyond that. Whoever you are, however you identify, if you are comfortable accepting support from us, we're here to help.
We provide guidance with:
- Mental Health
- Periods and Menstrual Health
- Sex and Relationships
- Body image and self-worth
- Self-care and Wellbeing
- Activism
We work with individuals to create tailor-made support, building a personalised action-plan based around the topics they want to focus on. Our process is underpinned by the Arch workbook, which is given to anyone who receives support from us. The workbook contains information, resources and interactive exercises on all of the topics we cover. You can either work through the workbook by itself in your own time, or alongside 1 on 1 mentoring sessions, making the process as hands-on or independent as you’re comfortable with.
Contact us either through our website www.wearearch.org or via our Instagram @arch.mentoring to sign up for free support or chat to us about rolling Arch support out in your business, school or organisation.