Charity match in memory of Eastbourne woman hoped to fight mental health stigma
Family and friends will play against eachother at Eastbourne Borough FC today (14th June) in memory of Chanté Lloyd-Buckingham
The mum of an Eastbourne woman who died after battling her mental health is hoping to fight stigma with a charity football match.
Family and friends will play against eachother at Eastbourne Borough FC today (14th June) in memory of Chanté Lloyd-Buckingham, who died in August last year.
The 24-year-old is described by family as "bouncy and bubbly and so full of energy" - but mum Emma shares that "in her last few months, she barely got out of bed":
"There's this horrible stigma attached to mental illness," she explained.
"It's the only illness that people don't let you recover from.
"I think the more we talk about it, the more we raise money for these fantastic charities, the better it is for those that are suffering.
"We need to get rid of this stigma so that people talk.
"If they don't talk, they end up like my daughter."
The match forms part of a family fun day running between 12 and 6pm raising money for mental health charity Mind and St Wilfrid's Hospice.
Campaign to improve assisted accomodation
The day comes as Chanté's family continue to battle to introduce "Chanté's Law", which would see a watchdog oversee assisted accommodation in the same way they overlook care homes.
It's after her parents raised concerns about the care Chanté received in the assisted accommodation she was living in at the time of her death.
"Chanté and I had been fighting to get her the correct support for so long... I just felt like I was just being a pain," Emma said.
Their petition calling for the change gained almost 70,000 signatures, with backing from local MP Josh Babarinde.