Type=image;ImageID=13556;ImageClass=left;ImageTitle=Claire Murdoch during her visit to the City;TitleClass=strong;
Claire Murdoch met representatives from the council and a wide range of other organisations at the event at the Civic Centre earlier this month.
Hosted by the council, it reflected on the good work taking place in the region to support people with mental health needs, and looked at areas for further development.
Claire, who has been a registered mental health nurse for more than 3 decades, also met young members of the pioneering HeadStart Wolverhampton programme, which is helping 10 to 16 year olds cope with life's challenges.
She said: "I was stimulated, humbled, uplifted and excited by all I heard about the work of the council and its partners. The passion, values and creativity shone through and I really had insight into the ideas and plans. I was blown away by Wolverhampton's youth - the future is bright."
Linda Sanders, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Strategic Director People, said: "Everyone made a strong impact on Claire and I am sure she will utilise some of her findings in her national role and bear Wolverhampton in mind when opportunities arise to contribute further to the implementation of the national programme in the future.
"The day underlined the importance of strong national policy direction with passionate leadership, and the impact of this on local implementation. It was great to hear how pleased Claire is with the way we have embraced the national programme here in the Black Country.
"A key challenge highlighted by Claire was to change the somewhat negative narrative around mental health support and services, and that is something we are determined to do here in Wolverhampton. Our HeadStart programme in particular is a very positive scheme which is an inspiration to us all and which is set to have a huge impact on the lives of so many children and young people."
HeadStart Wolverhampton, funded through The Big Lottery Fund, is a "test and learn" programme designed to improve the resilience and emotional well-being of children and young people by giving them the skills they need to address the challenges of modern life. To find out more, please visit Type=links;Linkid=6584;Title=Headstart;Target=_blank;, follow @headstartfm on Twitter or log on to Type=links;Linkid=7788;Title=Headstart Facebook;Target=_blank;.
- released: Thursday 24 August, 2017