A NEW health and wellbeing facility was opened at Humphry Davy School on Friday by former student and double Olympic gold medallist Helen Glover MBE.
The sportswoman was joined by Barbara Vann, chair of Duchy Health Charity, which has ploughed £437,000 of grant funding into The Enys Centre.
School governors, charity trustees, local dignitaries joined senior and pastoral leaders from the school and potential centre users on a tour of the new facilities.
Funding is now being sought for additional projects including plans for landscaping the surrounding area, the installation of a sensory garden and forest school facilities.
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Duchy Health Charity promotes health and wellbeing and the prevention of sickness across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Ms Vann said: “We were delighted to invite people into the new Enys Centre following 18 months of hard work.”
She explained how the centre will use the principles of social prescribing at its core, with supporting students, staff and the local community as its primary focus.
As part of its strategic work on supporting young people’s social prescribing in schools, the trustees of Duchy Health Charity identified Humphry Davy School in Penzance as an ideal location based on the level of need locally, a positive approach from its leadership team and governors, and its lively relationship with existing community groups. Students were proactive in choosing the centre’s name, with Enys meaning “island” in Cornish.
Head teacher Bill Marshall said: "We are very proud of our reputation for our caring approach, working with professionals across a wide range of agencies to support students of all abilities to overcome personal challenges, achieve and succeed.
“The Enys Centre takes our provision to a whole new level, providing resource and foundations for success for future generations in Penzance and the surrounding community.”
The board will include representatives from: Duchy Health Charity’s Intergenerational and Social Prescribing subgroup; the Humphry Davy School senior leadership team and board of governors; Public Health Cornwall; Penwith Primary Care Network, which has approximately 67,019 people registered from the seven GP practices; and the local community, including Trelya, a charity working to improve mental health and wellbeing and enable positive change.