Over 55,000 individuals supported by Beyond the Label Collective since last year

08 Sep 2023

SINGAPORE, 08 SEPTEMBER 2023 – Since it was launched last year, the Beyond the Label (BTL) Collective has engaged over 45,000 students and 10,000 individuals in the community on mental health conditions and equipped them on how to take care of their mental wellness as well as care for those around them.

  1. Students from a total of 43 schools were engaged through assembly talks with animation videos shared to educate the students about mental health as part of the upstream preventive work among the young. More targeted resources will also be rolled out to 10 primary schools in 2024, to help students learn to manage their mental health from a younger age.
  2. In terms of raising public mental health awareness, the BTL Collective has also hosted 20 community events and empowered 10,000 individuals with more information including ways to support persons with mental health conditions and how they can seek help. The community outreach will be expanded to the neighbourhoods with pilots in Punggol West and Bukit Batok East, to improve help-seeking and help-giving behaviours among residents. Grassroot leaders and volunteers will also be engaged and trained to serve as the first line of support to identify individuals with mental health conditions and rally the community to look out for one another. The aim is to reach out to at least 1,000 individuals per town.
  3. Ms Tan Li San, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Council of Social Service, said, “The BTL Collective has focused our outreach and partnership efforts to widen community support for persons with mental health conditions. With greater empathy and knowledge among public, community leaders and employers, we can all do our part to support our family, friends, neighbours or co-workers struggling with anxiety and other mental health conditions.”
  4. Since its launch in 2019, Belle, the BTL Helpbot that connects the public to mental health community services and resources, has supported more than 21,000 individuals. To further improve accessibility by members of the public, Belle will be available made via WhatsApp this month, in addition to web access and Facebook Messenger. This will enable individuals quicker access on the go.
  5. "The Collective’s initiatives represent a journey of support for persons with mental health conditions in Singapore. We want to equip more in the community with healthy coping strategies, encourage early help-seeking, and strengthen peer support. We are also pleased to advance the accessibility of mental health services and resources through Belle, the BTL Helpbot. Introducing Belle on multiple platforms will enable more individuals to access the support they require easily," said Mr James Tan, CEO of TOUCH Community Services.
  6. Corporate partners such as Jewel Changi Airport and its retailers also demonstrated their support for the BTL movement at BTL Fest 2023 on 8 September 2023, attended by President Halimah Yacob and host Mr Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development & Culture, Community and Youth. Selected retailers at Jewel also went the extra mile by sharing BTL message cards with customers and offering exclusive promotions to encourage the public to support the cause.
  7. Themed “Mental Wellness Begins With All Of Us”, the BTL Fest 2023 offered an array of activities including wellness workshops and community performances by schools. Local artistes such as Annette Lee, Rebecca Lim and Tasha Low also shared insights on the importance of mental well-being, with Rebecca and Tasha being part of a fireside chat along with social media influencer Zaki Hussain.
  8. To further engage the community to pledge their support for persons with mental health conditions and the BTL movement, a BTL concept train will be launched on the 27-station North South Line on 12 October 2023. The concept train and digital platforms at Jurong East MRT Station are estimated to reach out to about 432,000 commuters. Malls such as Jewel, Westgate and Waterway Point will also be holding BTL roving exhibitions to engage the community to pledge their support for the cause.
  9. For updates from the BTL Collective, follow the BTL Facebook page and Instagram page (@beyondthelabelsg). For mental health resources and services, visit Belle, the BTL Helpbot.

Additional information can be found in the Annexes:

  • Annex A – About BTL 2.0 Steering Committee and organisations in the BTL Collective
  • Annex B – BTL Fest 2023 (Programmes, List of Participating Partners at Jewel Changi Airport, List of Partner Booths, List of Workshops and Exhibitions)
  • Annex C – BTL Community Events and Workshops
  • Annex D – Translation Glossary

For media enquiries, please contact:

Boo Jiun Yi
Ninemer Communications
+65 9299 3662
boojiunyi@ninemer.com
Lim Si Yun
Ninemer Communications
+65 9119 5601
limsiyun@ninemer.com

 

About National Council of Social Service (NCSS)
NCSS is the umbrella body for over 450-member social service agencies in Singapore. Its mission is to provide leadership and direction in enhancing the capabilities and capacity of our members, advocating for social service needs and strengthening strategic partnerships, for an effective social service ecosystem. Community Chest is the fundraising and engagement arm of NCSS and Social Service Institute (SSI) is the human capital development arm of NCSS. For more information, please visit www.ncss.gov.sg.

About TOUCH Community Services
Since 1992, TOUCH Community Services has served people of all ages, races and religions to see sustainable change and transformation in their lives. It believes in the worth and potential of every child, youth at-risk, family in need, senior and person with special or healthcare needs to grow, participate and contribute in the community. The heartbeat of TOUCH is to activate potential, build independence, connect people, and deliver impact by developing sustainable solutions in society. For more information on TOUCH, please visit www.touch.org.sg.

About Beyond the Label
Beyond the Label (BTL) is a nation-wide movement started in 2018 by National Council of Social Service (NCSS), which focuses on addressing stigma towards and promoting social inclusion of persons with mental health conditions. In 2022, President Halimah launched the second phase of the movement (BTL 2.0) and the BTL Collective, which comprises partners from the public, private and people sectors working together to create an empowering and inclusive environment for persons with mental health conditions. BTL 2.0 is led by NCSS and TOUCH Community Services. For updates from the BTL Collective, follow the BTL Facebook and Instagram page (@beyondthelabelsg). For mental health resources and services, visit Belle, the BTL Helpbot (https://go.gov.sg/belle-helpbot).


Annex A – About BTL 2.0 Steering Committee and organisations in the BTL Collective

S/N Role Agency Representative
1 Co-chair National Council of Social Service Ms Tan Li San,
Chief Executive Officer
2 Co-chair TOUCH Community Services Mr James Tan,
Chief Executive Officer
3 Member Agency for Integrated Care Mr Thomas Tan,
Deputy Director, Caregiver and Community Mental Health Division
4 Member Care Corner Singapore Mr Joseph Eio,
Deputy Director, Mental Health & Counselling Services and Children Services
5 Member Meta Ms Clara Koh,
Head of Public Policy, Singapore and ASEAN
6 Member Institute of Mental Health Dr Lee Cheng,
Clinical Director (Population Health)
7 Member MINDSET Care Limited (Jardine MINDSET) Ms Colyn Chua,
Head, MINDSET Singapore
8 Member Samaritans of Singapore Mr Phua Chun Yat,
Chief Operating Officer
9 Member Singapore Association for Mental Health Ms Ngo Lee Yian,
Executive Director
10 Member Singapore Children’s Society Ms Vivyan Chee,
Deputy Director
11 Member SG Enable Mr Lin Weiting,
Assistant Director, Independent Living and Caregiver Support Division

 

Organisations in the BTL Collective
(Five new partners are marked with asterisks)

  1. National Council of Social Service
  2. TOUCH Community Services
  3. Agency for Integrated Care
  4. AMKFSC Community Services Limited
  5. Campus PSY
  6. Care Corner Singapore
  7. CARE Singapore
  8. Community Health Assessment Team
  9. Fei Yue Community Services
  10. Health Promotion Board
  11. Institute of Mental Health
  12. Intellect*
  13. Limitless
  14. Lutheran Community Care Services
  15. Meta
  16. MINDSET Care Limited (Jardine MINDSET)
  1. Ministry of Culture, Community & Youth*
  2. Families for Life Council**
  3. Republic Polytechnic
  4. Resilience Collective
  5. Samaritans of Singapore
  6. SG Enable
  7. SHINE Children & Youth Services
  8. Silver Ribbon
  9. Singapore Anglican Community Services
  10. Singapore Association for Mental Health
  11. Singapore Children’s Society
  12. Singapore National Employers Federation*
  13. Stellar Lifestyle Pte Ltd
  14. Temasek Polytechnic
  15. Workplace Safety and Health Council*

 


Annex B – BTL Fest 2023

1) Programme on 8 September 2023 at Jewel Changi Airport

Time Venue Programme
10:00 am onwards South Gateway Garden & Atrium Start of workshops, booths and games
9:30 am –
11:00 am
Changi Experience Studio Aromatherapy workshop by Mount Sapola
11:30 am –
1:00 pm
Zentangle art workshop by Mama on Palette
1:00 pm –
2:30 pm
Human Library Experience by Resilience Collective
3:00 pm –
4:30 pm
Wellness workshop by Miffy Hop
5:45 pm –
5:55 pm
Cloud9 Piazza Opening by emcees - Annette Lee and Ian Jeevan
5:55 pm –
6:15 pm
Guzheng performance by Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Secondary School
6:15 pm –
6:25 pm
Violin performance by Zeph Pak
6:30 pm – 6:40 pm Welcome Address by SPS Eric Chua
6:40 pm –
6:55 pm
Presentation of Token of Appreciation and Group Photo
6:55 pm –
7:10 pm
Dancesport performance by Edgefield Primary School
7:10 pm –
7:20 pm
Ballet performance by My Ballet Studio
7:20 pm –
8:30 pm
Fireside chat
8:32 pm –
8:45 pm
Performance by Annette Lee
8:45 pm –
9:00 pm
Band performance by Commonwealth Secondary School
9:00 pm End of stage performances
09:30 pm South Gateway Garden & Atrium Start of workshops, booths and games

 

2) List of Participating Partners at Jewel Changi Airport

The participating retail partners at Jewel Changi Airport will be rallying support for the BTL Fest and throughout the month of September 2023.

Partners Description
ABC Cooking Studio
Arteastiq
Din Tai Fung
Greendot
Timberland
  • These partners will engage customers to promote the message that Mental Wellness Begins with All of Us.
  • An estimated 10,000 message cards will be distributed at outlets in Jewel.
In addition to the message card, the following partners are offering exclusive discounts and promotions for its customers:
Andersen’s of Denmark
  • First 100 customers who buy 1 scoop of ice cream will get another 1 scoop of ice-cream free at the Jewel store (6-8 September).
Earle Swensen’s
  • Introducing a new item on the menu, known as the BRAVE Sundae, in line with BTL.
IRVINS
  • Complimentary Salted Egg Fish Skin (50g) with a minimum spending of $30 (1-10 September).
Pu Tien
  • A free dish will be offered when patrons quote #beyondthelabel when ordering (4-10 September).
Sourbombe Bakery
  • Offering a 10% discount off all menu items (8 September).

 

3) List of Partner Booths

S/N Partner Description
1 Agency for Integrated Care (AIC)

Aligned with the World Mental Health Day theme of “Stand Together for Mental Health”, AIC and the community partners are coming together to build awareness and knowledge of mental health, empower visitors with resources and promote self-care to achieve better well-being.

Visitors can immerse in a virtual reality experience to better understand persons with mental health issues, build empathy and gain insights into their challenges. They can also learn about signs and symptoms of various mental health conditions and dementia through the E-Learning module and pick up self-care tips to enhance mental well-being.

Lastly, visitors can gain insights into their emotions through a live drawing activity where an artist will personalise an art piece based on their feelings.

2 Campus PSY

The Campus PSY booth showcases educational short films on mental health, which includes topics like "Destigmatising a Counselling Session in School / Workplace". Visitors can interactively experience these films, fostering meaningful conversations on mental health matters.

Campus PSY volunteers will also facilitate small group discussions. Through these discussions, attendees can delve into important issues surrounding mental health stigma, help-seeking behaviours, peer support, referrals, and community mental health resources in Singapore, which aligns perfectly with this year's theme: “Mental Wellness Begins with All of Us”.

3 Limitless

Visitors will immerse themselves in an eye-opening experience through an interactive visual novel by Limitless. Multiple screens, such as laptops, tablets, and headphones, will be available for visitors to experience "A Day in the life" of a youth struggling with depression.

This unique visual novel follows a "choose your own adventure" style, allowing visitors to make choices impacting the youth's day and mental well-being. From struggling to leave the house for school to experiencing social withdrawal and difficulty with friends, the novel offers insights into the day-to-day challenges faced by youth with depression.

4 Mindline

Visitors will receive cards that bring them to various mindfulness exercises on mindline.sg and will be encouraged to sign up for an account on ‘Let’s Talk’ to share what mental health means to them.

Visitors will also get a chance to catch a Mili plushie from the mindline.sg claw machine. The Mili plushie also doubles as a stress ball and contains a QR code that brings users to mindline.sg whenever they need self-help resources.

5 MINDSET

The MINDSET booth seeks to reinforce the BTL Fest message of “Mental Wellness Begins with All of Us” via an interactive game of matching cards. Visitors of the booth can learn about the signs and symptoms of various mental health conditions, and help to spread positive mental health messages through the complimentary temporary tattoos provided!

6 Singapore Association for Mental Health (SAMH)

In line with the central theme of "Mental Wellness Begins with All of Us," SAMH presents the booth "Emote Well," inviting visitors to embark on a journey of self-discovery.

The booth delves into the realm of enhancing emotional awareness and comprehending how emotions significantly impact overall wellbeing. Through interactive displays and insightful activities, visitors will gain valuable insights into recognising, expressing, and harnessing emotions for a healthier mind.

7 Singapore Children’s Society

"How Have You Bean?" is an interactive engagement booth with five stations. It aims to provide visitors with a platform to learn more about mental health and reflect on their mental health journey to gain more personal insights and self-management strategies.

8 SHINE

At the booth, visitors can participate in activities such as "What we see & What we don't", where they can interpret pictures and compare their interpretations with the actual narrative, allowing them to learn the importance of understanding things beyond how they appear.

They can also craft their own "Tokens of Love”, by designing supportive badges to commit to doing something for themselves or others, reinforcing the key message "Be Brave, Be There for Others".

9 Temasek Polytechnic

As part of the experience at the Temasek Polytechnic booth, visitors can enjoy Sand Tray Therapy, a form of expressive therapy that allows individuals to make the unconscious conscious. By using miniatures to construct their own world, visitors can explore and resolve conflicts, remove obstacles, and ultimately gain a deeper acceptance of themselves.

10 Beyond the Label (BTL) Exhibition

The BTL Exhibition aims to educate visitors about various mental health conditions, as well as correct misconceptions.

Visitors can also participate in a pebble painting activity, where they can leave encouraging messages on it. The pebbles will be collected to build a pebble walk in the neighbourhood.

 

3) List of Partner Booths

S/N Workshop Description
1 Aromatherapy workshop by Mt. Sapola

Participants can expect to learn about the benefits of various essential oils and how each one can contribute to managing their mental well-being.

2 Zentangle Art workshop by Mama on Palette

Participants will have the opportunity to relax and connect with themselves through the creation of Zentangle drawings. Zentangle is a relaxing and therapeutic art form that uses a microtip pen to create intricate patterns on a small piece of paper.

3 Human Library Experience by Resilience Collective

The Human Library offers a unique, honest and up-close experience with persons with mental health conditions to engage in authentic sharings, normalise conversations surrounding mental health, and break down barriers to reduce mental health stigma.

4 Wellness workshop by Miffy Hop

Participants will learn different types of exercise that will help to ease their pain and lead a healthy lifestyle for better mental wellness.

5 Build the Change Exhibition by the LEGO® Group

It showcases various LEGO® sets done by child service users from various social service agencies. They were taught to portray their emotions through LEGO® bricks and other creative materials.

 


Annex C – BTL Community Events and Workshops

Partner Duration What to Expect
Jewel 8 to 14 October 2023
  • BTL Roving Exhibition
  • Partner Booths
  • BRAVE Mascot Appearance
Waterway Point 16 to 22 October 2023
  • BTL Roving Exhibition
  • AR Photo Booth
  • Partner Booths
  • BRAVE Mascot Appearance
SOS November 2023 to January 2024
  • Be a Samaritan programme
AMKFSC November 2023 to January 2024
  • Stress Management workshop
  • Suicide Intervention workshop
  • Peer Support workshop
TOUCH Ongoing
  • Stress Management workshop
  • Mindfulness workshop
  • Resilience Building workshop
  • Parent-Child Coping Skills workshop
  • Anger Management workshop
  • Peer Support workshop
  • Self-Care workshop
TOUCH Ongoing
  • Mobile exhibitions with pebble painting

 

Annex D – Translation Glossary

English

Chinese

Malay

Tamil

Beyond the Label (BTL) “跨越成见,退去标签” 'Beyond the Label' 'Beyond the Label'
Beyond the Label Fest “跨越成见,退去标签” 活动 Pesta ‘Beyond the Label’ 'Beyond the Label' விழா
Beyond the Label Collective “跨越成见,退去标签” 联盟 Kolektif ‘Beyond the Label’ 'Beyond the Label' கூட்டுத்துக்கள்
Belle, Beyond the Label Helpbot “跨越成见,退去标签” 虚拟助手, Belle Bot bantu ‘Beyond the Label’, Belle Belle, ‘Beyond the Label' உதவி இயலி
National Council of Social Service 国家福利理事会 Majlis Khidmat Sosial Kebangsaan தேசியச் சமூகச் சேவை மன்றம்
TOUCH Community Services 触爱社会服务 TOUCH Community Services TOUCH Community Services
Ms Tan Li San,
Chief Executive Officer,
National Council of Social Service
陈丽珊
执行理事长
国家福利理事会

Mr James Tan,
Chief Executive Officer,
TOUCH Community Services
陈锦耀
总裁
触爱社会服务

Ms Andrea Chan,
Head of TOUCH Mental Wellness
陈燕妮
主管
触爱心理健康