The aim of Peerfest is to celebrate the importance of peer support. A peer is a valuable part of the charities network where in a peer uses their own experiences of mental health to help others, using community groups, mentoring, self-help and support groups to connect with each other.
A nationwide tender has been used for the last three years for Peerfest with Bristol Independent Mental Health Network and Changes Bristol winning the right to host and deliver Peerfest17. The event was held on Monday 9th October 2017 at We The Curious (formerly known as @Bristol), Bristol.
Approximately 270 peers came together for a varied, fun and inspirational event. There was a mix of stalls, interesting workshops, creative and interactive activities and a thought-provoking debate. It also included The Marsh Awards, recognising excellence in mental health peer support. The whole event is a chance for peers to network and share their knowledge.
How Did ZiaBia fit into the picture?
The cross-organisational Peerfest National Planning Team, facilitated by Mind, oversees the Peerfest events. ZiaBia were asked to join this team in the summer of 2016, on a consultancy basis. Our role involved evaluation of the Peerfest16 event and actively working alongside the National Planning team looking at a 5 year plan going forward.
This work then continued, as our involvement with Peerfest17 was even bigger. We were engaged as a support to the groups who were looking to tender as we were able to offer guidance with their respective tender submissions from an event management perspective. Once the tender process was complete and had been awarded to the successful organisations in Bristol, we were also asked to join the Local Planning Team for 2017.
We were involved in local planning meetings and site inspections ahead of the day. Our role became more ‘hands on’ in the latter stages of the process, both during the pre-event planning and onsite. We managed the registration desk, arrival process and name badges as well as supporting with negotiating rates and contracting for the venue, the catering team, the AV team, entertainment and filming of the event.
We are now looking forward to 2018 and beyond. ZiaBia are extremely proud and honoured to have provided our services to this incredible celebration of peer support.