Mikeysline announces partnership with Michaels Culinary School to provide online workshops to the public, and promote good mental health through food, and develop cooking skills. 

Michaels Culinary School, a new online and in-person culinary school launched by CEOs Michael Fallows and Connor Rae in 2021 as a Social Enterprise, announces a collaboration with grassroots mental health and suicide prevention charity Mikeysline (SC046574). The School has been in talks with a local GP to be a contributor for social prescription, who will refer patients to the School to learn new skills, engage in the community, and pursue a healthy lifestyle using the replicable and affordable recipes produced and taught by Michaels Culinary School Chef Connor Rae.

Mikeysline provides text-based support via a multitude of social media platforms during evenings and weekends for people across the Highlands and Moray struggling with their mental health. The charity also provides drop-in and one-to-one in-person support, as well as collaborating with schools and workforces to provide educational activities and workshops.

Online workshops with Michael’s Culinary School will cover several classic dishes and encourage attendees to build confidence in the kitchen from the comfort of their own home. The workshop collaboration will launch in the week beginning 10^th October 2022- World Mental Health Day, and a number of places on the workshop have been reserved for the benefit of Mikeysline- volunteers and service users. The School will provide codes for Mikeysline to use as vouchers when they apply to join the classes via the Schools website, michaelsculinaryschool.co.uk. The School provides a list of ingredients and equipment, and a link to join the online workshop. Members of the public are encouraged to participate in the workshops as well, and can book a place in the same way.

Mikeysline has recently welcomed consultant nutritional scientist and visiting contributor Kerstin Eickhoff-Piechaczek from Germany. Kerstin will be attending some of the workshops with Connor to facilitate friendly and informative conversations about the relationships between food and mental health in a number of the workshops.

Katie Melville, Fundraising Manager for Mikeysline said: “We were delighted to be approached by Michaels Culinary School to benefit from their online workshop programme. Their vision as a social enterprise to encourage people in our community to learn new skills and prepare fresh, healthy and affordable meals for themselves is appropriately timed as the cost of living continues to affect all of us. By being able to signpost our service users to Michaels Culinary School we can encourage people meet and talk to others, learn something new, and prepare a fresh healthy meal.”

Michael Fallows, CEO of Michaels Culinary School, said: “Michaels Culinary School was setup with the help and support of my Grandad who sadly took his own life in January 2022 due to poor mental health. I want to use this opportunity with Mikeysline to make sure that they can continue the work and support that they provide to the local community, and to make sure that people know its ok not to be ok.”