Active in Mind is an Athlete Mentor and peer-led programme, designed around the importance of looking after the body, mind and environment. The aim is to improve mental health and wellbeing issues present in schools through physical activity. The programme engages a minimum of 20 young people per school, 15 'mentees' are in the Nurture Group, and 5 'mentors' are Young Mental Health Champions. As part of the programme, the mentors plan and deliver a 6-week intervention for the mentees to take part in.

To capture and demonstrate the reach and outcomes achieved through Active in Mind, the YST Research and Insight Team has synthesised evidence from programme delivery between 2017 and 2022. You can access and download the full report on the right-hand side. This also includes stories about how schools have implemented Active in Mind in their settings.

Below a summary of key takeaways as a result of the programme:

Physical activity

• 65% of mentees and 62% of mentors reported increases to their physical activity levels

Mental health

• 64% of mentees agreed that they were feeling more relaxed
• 61% of mentees agreed that they were coping better
• 61% of mentees agreed that they felt more confident and positive overall

Social wellbeing

• 71% of mentees agreed they were more confident in trying out new things
• 65% of mentees agreed they felt more confident in talking to others
• 61% of mentees agreed they felt more confident in meeting new people

Life skills

• 89% of mentors improved their leadership skills
• 86% of mentors improved their teamworking skills
• 84% of mentors improved their communication skills
• 76% of mentees and 78% of mentors improved their resilience