By Matthew McKenzie – Chair of Ethnic MH Carer forum
On Thursday 15 October 2026, I attended an evening event hosted by Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust, bringing together staff, community representatives, faith voices and people with lived experience to discuss racial inequalities in mental health care, although I attended as Chair of the National ethnic mental health carer forum, It was also lovely to be joined by Beata Bikowska and Tina Stevens from Cygnet Hospital Maidstone, alongside NHS colleagues and community partners, for this important conversation on tackling mental health inequalities.
By Matthew McKenzie – Carers UK Ambassador, chair of South London Carers Forum
On Thursday 15 October 2026, I attended the World Mental Health Day Fair at King’s College Hospital in Denmark Hill. Organised by the hospital’s Vulnerabilities Team, the event brought together organisations sharing information about mental health, wellbeing, recovery and community support.
I was there as a Carers UK Ambassador and facilitator of the South London Mental Health Carers Forum. For me, attending these events comes from personal experience. Having cared for my late mother, who lived with schizophrenia, I know how much responsibility families can carry, and how easily their own needs can go unnoticed.
By Matthew McKenzie – Triangle of Care Community Group Chair
Turning carer involvement into meaningful change
On Monday 12 October, I chaired the latest Triangle of Care Community Group meeting, bringing together unpaid carers, mental health professionals and partner organisations to share experiences and learning.
Our discussions explored what meaningful carer involvement looks like, developments within the Triangle of Care programme, and the support carers should be able to access. We heard encouraging examples of co-production, alongside honest accounts of gaps that continue to affect families.
On Tuesday 13 October 2026, I facilitated a carers’ poetry session at Ignition Brewery in Lewisham, supported by Imago. We explored our surroundings, shared thoughts about poetry, and used drawings to express feelings through words. What mattered to me was giving carers space to create and hear one another.
I began by sharing how writing became part of my own caring journey. As a former carer for my mother, who lived with schizophrenia, and an ongoing carer for my two non-verbal autistic brothers, I know how difficult it can be to explain what caring involves. Writing books helped me raise awareness, while poetry gave me another way to communicate experiences and emotions in a few lines.
For World Mental Health Day 2026, I have created a short campaign video reflecting on this year’s theme: “Lived experiences heard: real voices, real change.”
As someone who cared for my mother, who lived with schizophrenia, this message means a great deal to me. People living with mental ill health deserve to shape the care they receive. Alongside them, unpaid carers also bring experiences and knowledge that services need to hear.
Caring can involve supporting someone through appointments, noticing changes in their wellbeing, or helping them settle at home after hospital. It can also mean uncertainty, sleepless nights and struggling to find someone who will listen.
Yet how often does someone ask the carer, “How are you coping?”
In my video, I highlight the importance of supporting carers’ own mental health and hearing from Black and minority ethnic carers, whose experiences of racism, stigma and exclusion need recognition and action.
I also discuss the Triangle of Care, which strengthens the partnership between the person receiving care, their carer and mental health professionals. That partnership must respect the person’s wishes, privacy and dignity while recognising the carer’s contribution and support needs.
World Mental Health Day brings global attention to these issues through the World Federation for Mental Health and the World Health Organization. Organisations including the Mental Health Foundation, Rethink Mental Illness, Carers UK and Carers Trust also provide valuable information, advocacy and support.
My message is simple: listening should lead to meaningful involvement and visible change.
If you are an unpaid mental health carer, your experience matters. You deserve care too.
Watch my short video and please share it to help unpaid carers feel seen and heard.
By Matthew McKenzie, Carer poet and author supporting caring communities
On Thursday 8 October 2026, I returned to Ealing Central Library to lead a poetry workshop for unpaid carers with Ealing Carers Partnership. We explored the library, wrote poems and experimented with performance, making time for conversation and laughter along the way.
As a carer myself, I know how easily our own interests can slip into the background. This session gave participants space to express themselves and hear one another, without needing previous poetry experience.
By Matthew McKenzie BEM, FRSA – Carer Activist, Unpaid Carer and Triangle of Care Community Chair
On Thursday 8 October 2026, I was delighted to attend, present and support the East London NHS Foundation Trust (ELFT) Annual Social Work Conference, held at Regent Hall, Salvation Army, Oxford Street, London.
It was an opportunity to celebrate the important work of social workers, hear their professional journeys and share my own experiences as an unpaid mental health carer.
On Monday 5 October 2026 at the ORTUS, I shared my carer story at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust’s staff induction. I attended as a carer member of SUITE — Service User and Carer Involvement in Training and Education, managed by Angela Mitchell. The presentation was warmly received, and I was particularly pleased that my poetry video connected with staff.
I spoke about caring for my mother, who lived with schizophrenia, and my continuing role supporting my brothers. I reflected on the uncertainty of becoming a carer, the responsibilities that followed, and the difference it made when someone listened, explained things and recognised my own support needs. My message to staff was simple: carers bring knowledge, relationships and experience that deserve to be heard.
Matthew McKenzie — Carers UK ambassador, author and poet
October is a time to celebrate Black history, culture and achievements, and to reflect on the people whose contributions have shaped Britain. As an unpaid carer and carer activist, I also see Black History Month as an opportunity to recognise the care taking place within our families and communities.
My new video, “Black History Month 2026: Honouring Our Communities and Unpaid Carers,” explores these connections, from celebrating Black British achievements to recognising carers whose work often receives little attention.
Recognising the care within our communities
Althouth History is shaped by more than famous names. It is also shaped by people who support relatives, neighbours and friends through illness, disability, mental health difficulties and older age.
By Matthew McKenzie, Cygnet PCREF Carer Lead and Carer Ambassador
On 1 October 2026, I attended Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust’s Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework (PCREF) Community Event at St Thomas Centre in Manchester.
I attended in my role as Cygnet’s PCREF Carer Lead and Carer Ambassador, sharing Cygnet carer information alongside wider resources on the Triangle of Care and carer voices. I wanted to build relationships, learn from the discussions and keep the experiences of unpaid carers visible within conversations about racial inequality in mental health care, although at times i will support events as Triangle of Care ambassador.
