TIMELINE
MANUP? How it all started, what happened in between and where we are now.
4 mar 2019
MANUP? was born.
Between this, ideas started flying, looking for land to host a large photoshoot, the concept was turned down, a lot, because it didn’t fit the ‘norm’. No-one wanted to get involved with the phrase MANUP?. They didn’t get it.
26 Mar 2019
Dan contacted a school governor at Copleston
About using Copleston school field, within 20 minutes of that call, Mr Andy Green (Head Teacher) welcomed the ‘idea’ and offered the schools land.
29 Mar 2019
Dan contacted Steve Bown.
We had dates, we had the idea, we needed a ‘brand’.
We got people talking about mental health in the local area.
Press picked it up.
We were changing opinions.
Men were contacting us for guidance.
23 Jun 2019
MANUP? event happened.
We didn’t hit the 1000 target.
One of the major routes to the location was closed for 2 hours,
We learned a lot.
We kept chipping away, re-planning, learning what people wanted from the first event.
12 Feb 2020
MANUP? #2 was born.
We wanted to do it again but with a new location, easier to find etc…
Cult Bar in Ipswich agreed to host the event.
Date booked - 27 June 2020.
We had speakers.
More of a social gathering rather than just the photos.
We listened to the feedback from the first gig.
Where it Changed
Mar 2020
COVID.
We paused the event.
23 APR 2020
Joe Ball from Fred Olsen sent us a video which covered telling employers about depression etc… He discussed his own issues / battles and how he got past it.
We knew we were on to something!
14 MAY 2020
Our first video with 5 men.
Life & Mental Health during the lockdown. We wanted to highlight what each person was doing etc… We spoke to a church leader, photographer, CEO and ex-police officer.
We did these videos weekly during lockdowns. We started to get messages from people asking for help.
11 JUN 2020
A gay guy, a Christian, an American and a Ginger joined a video.
We wanted to discuss any discrimination they’ve had to deal with in their lives after a global story in the news.
Again, we were flooded with messages & comments.
24 JUN 2020
We decided to call it a day with the event.
We got bored cancelling and rearranging. We got a new date for the event. 26 Sep 2020 but we expected to cancel this due to COVID.
8 JUN 2020
One-on-one.
We wanted to try one-on-one videos rather than group chats. We wanted to highlight issues that men have with mental health.
15 AUG 2020
One of Dan’s friends sent in a video.
He discussed his story and what made him ask for help. The video brought in a couple of messages, asking for guidance.
10 SEP 2020
Dan made a video.
He discussed why he won’t share anything about mental health weeks or suicide days.
13 OCT 2020
Our first ever video under the new MANUP? format on Facebook. We had to start a new page, a new identity. We launched the page with a video called ‘Tourette’s & Mental Health’.
The new format of MANUP? was born.
24th oct 2020
Dan started to count the messages, emails and private message he had from men wanting help, a chat or guidance. He knew that we needed to have a regulated process.
21 dec 2020
We spoke to a financial advisor (Ian Little) who helped many businesses, charities and even churches about setting up as a charity. Ian volunteered his services
26 Jan 2021
We had our first real meeting about setting up as a CIO/Charity. We worked out our goals, mission and the next steps for MANUP?
3 MARCH 2021
After weeks of emails, calls and zoom meetings we agreed on the legal framework, constitution and ‘stuff’. Ian Little submitted our application to the charity commission.
Getting Serious
12 May 2021
We helped with ‘Welcome back to Wellbeing’ with EADT. Dan took part in this week-long event in Suffolk. You can watch his interview here
24 May 2021
Charity Commission - Delayed by 8 weeks. Due to COVID & Delays, we are still waiting for approval as a registered charity (CIO)
7 JULY 2021
We did it. We are now a registered charity. Our details: MANUP? Registered Charity Number 1195085. Now, our focus is to remove the stigma of men & mental health.
JANUARY 2022
Finally, we can move on from the video only format. We have been able to talk in schools, universities & arranging our own events due to COVID rules being relaxed.
Happening Now
Social media will always account for 60% of our work. We show mostly male characters overcoming mental health problems, rather than suffering from them. As a result, we now work with businesses, schools, NHS & other charities to continue to break down the stigma associated with male mental health. MANUP? organises regular events to reach out to places social media might not reach.