Leeds Survivor Led Crisis Service: Dial House at Touchstone celebrates 10 years being 'a light through darkness'

The LSLCS was set up by service users back in 1999 who then pushed for it to be more developed, becoming Dial House. This year, Dial House at Touchstone (DH@T), a smaller operation than Dial House which works with people from diverse backgrounds, celebrates its 10th anniversary.

The celebration was held at Polish Catholic Centre, Chapel Allerton, on Thursday, May 25 bringing together users of the service, staff and supporters. Crisis support worker Davina Comrie, 40, said: “I'm personally celebrating just everyone coming together. Visitors that have been in crisis have actually been able to come here to celebrate. It’s to say, thank you for using the service. And we're strong,10 years strong. It's a community thing and we feel like we're all family.”

The celebration had music and dancing, as well as drinks and cultural food – including samosas, bhajis and chicken curry – as the charity looked back on its 10 years. Some service uses also took to the stage to share their own stories.

Users shared their experiences with the service on a board at the celebration too. One user said: “This place is a haven for me, where I can be safe and feel normal,” while another said: “There have been so many times I wanted to give up on myself, but it’s like the staff at DH@T has bought me back to life. Thank you for never giving up on me.”

Davina said it’s a big thing for any culturally diverse charity like itself, with users from all backgrounds particularly African, Caribbean and Irish and even offers services to asylum seekers and refugees, to make it to its 10th anniversary. She added: “It's remarkable, cause it’s something that's needed. It gives users a safe space to talk about cultural things, that they don't have an opportunity to do. They can talk about things that are racial, that are oppressed.

“I've had a lot of people that come in crisis, talk about things that they can't talk about in other places, or mental health charities, or even the NHS – they're not able to relate to them. And that's the biggest thing I found, a lot of our clients are able to relate to us.”

To see the users they have helped at the celebration and know how many others the service has supported is a “fantastic” feeling, said Davina. She added: “Sometimes you see people that don't want to talk but after a while they start opening up to people and there are people in so much crisis that you couldn't even believe, they feel like they're gonna end the life but they feel like this service has helped them to not feel that way. It's just like a light through the darkness.”

More information about Dial House @ Touchstone can be found on the LSLCS website.