THE people of Peebles put their best feet forward on Saturday to support mental health charities in the area.

Walk a Mile Peebles was organised by See Me community champion Bridget Dickson.

And a number of local groups took part in the walk around town – including the Tweeddale Youth Action Group.

Now in its third year, the event was also supported by Freda Douglas’ Depressed Cake Café in the MacFarlane Hall.

That gave walkers the chance to chat about mental health over tea and cake.

Freda has recently set up a website in memory of her daughter Evie – called Inspiring Life.

And it will allow locals who are involved in mental health projects to apply for grants to help fund their work.

Freda said: “A great turnout of supporters of the Depressed Cake Shop/Cafe and Walk A Mile event attended the MacFarlane Hall on Saturday.

“It was lovely to see so many members of Tweeddale Youth Action and our local community gather to share stories, support each other and raise awareness of mental health issues.”

The Walk a Mile campaign was created by See Me with activist Chris McCullough Young, who had the aim of changing attitudes one conversation at a time. So far thousands of people have taken part in Walks across Scotland, bringing together health professionals, carers, people with lived experience of mental health problems, students, or anyone who cares about tackling mental health discrimination, to break down barriers as they walk a mile in each other’s shoes.

Wendy Halliday, from charity See Me, which organised the event in Peebles said: “Mental health affects all of us, but there is still a stigma around it.

“To tackle this properly people need to understand that it is okay not to be okay.”

To find out more about Freda Douglas’ Inspiring Life charity, visit: inspiringlife.org.uk