The Charlie Waller Trust on Art & Mental Wellbeing

The Charlie Waller Trust is a mental health charity with a focus on children and young people. It provides free mental health training and resources to parents, carers, teachers, and others with responsibility for young people. These are evidence-based and designed to give people skills, knowledge, and confidence to spot mental health issues in those they support, to open conversations with them and encourage them to seek the help they need.

50% of mental health problems are established by age 14. This means it’s vital to catch them early. Those around young people are crucial to this – parents, carers, teachers, youth workers. They need to become skilled and confident in talking to young people about mental health and helping them get the support they need. The Charlie Waller Trust exists to make this happen by providing free training, resources, webinars and information across the UK. 

The Charlie Waller Trust will hold their inaugural exhibition at Mall Galleries between 19 - 22 March 2025, bringing together a diverse range of works from both emerging and established artists. We had the pleasure of interviewing the team at Charlie Waller about their exhibition and work as a charity.

Why did you decide to organise an art exhibition?

We're always looking for new and unique ways of raising funds to continue our work and this will be the first art exhibition we have held to raise funds. We’re aware that a lot of our events are based on music and sport or other physical activities, and we're really keen to broaden our appeal to people with different interests. Last year, we ran an art masterclass, 'Unleash Your Inner Artist', which was very successful. It seemed a natural progression to explore another art event, on a larger scale. The funds raised from the exhibition will help us reach more people with our training and resources at a time when it's more important than ever to support young people with their mental health.

What would you say to encourage people to visit your exhibition?

With over 300 pieces of art, including sculpture, ceramics, and paintings in many different media, and over 90 artists, it’s an opportunity for people to take time out from their day and immerse themselves in the creative experience. For some visitors, that might mean bringing a sketch book, like our Youth Ambassador Ginya Marr, who says: “I find it cathartic to sketch something for no reason other than to feel alive. It’s the purest form of understanding another’s experience through your own. In sketching, I choose closeness.” There will also be an interactive activity at the exhibition for visitors to take part in if they wish.

What would you hope for visitors to take away from the exhibition and what do you hope to achieve from it?

Our intention is that visitors will have enjoyed looking at the art and appreciated the positive effects it can have on mental health. We hope that they will also come away from the exhibition having learnt more about mental health and the work of the Charlie Waller Trust. It is, of course, also a fundraising event, so we would love for them to purchase the artworks too!

Can you broadly discuss some of the ways that art can make a powerful positive contribution to mental health?

Research has found that making art can have positive effects on health, including reducing anxiety and stress and improving mood (American Journal of Public Health). This is great news if you enjoy painting, drawing, crafts or any of the other many forms of artistic expression. There is also promising evidence for effects of viewing artwork on reducing stress - in particular, self-reported stress and systolic blood pressure. Looking at artwork in a gallery may add to the effects of viewing it (BMJ Open). So, whether you like to sketch in the sun, join a fun art class, or visit an art gallery, making art a part of your life can give your wellbeing a boost.

Exhibiting artists are demonstrating their commitment to young people’s mental health by generously donating 50% of proceeds to the Charlie Waller Trust - are there any other ways to support the work of the charity?                                                                                                                                                                     

There are many other ways people can choose to support the Charlie Waller Trust – fundraising, following us on social media, getting involved in our events, signing up to our newsletter, sharing our resources, and spreading the word about us and our vital work.

The Charlie Waller Trust Art Exhibition 2025, takes places between 19 - 22 March 2025, across the West and East Galleries.