A colourful fashion show, highlighting the latest trends, was held in Life nightclub recently in aid of a very worthwhile cause.

With fashions for men and women, the event raised money for the Act Now Stamp Out Stigma (SOS) campaign between Beacon and the Lakeland Players.

The local collaboration will see the launch of a 20 minute theatrical performance on 10th September (World Suicide day) at the Ardhowen Theatre, which will then be performed in all Fermanagh schools during September and October.

Focusing on mental health, the play will highlight four areas which were identified by local schools and young people as having an impact on their emotional wellbeing: social media, body image, self harm and family pressures.

The idea for the project came from staff within Beacon and members of the Lakeland Players who felt they wanted to do something following the particularly difficult period during Winter 2012 when a number of Fermanagh families experienced the loss of loved ones through suicide.

The partnership has been successful in securing funding through the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development's Rural Challenge Programme to raise awareness of mental health issues among young people in Fermanagh.

Following focus groups with young people and feedback from schools in Fermanagh, Beacon and the Lakeland Players spent the summer devising a play and workshops to take on the road to all post-primary schools in Fermanagh.

As well as the 20 minute performance, Beacon staff and volunteers will facilitate 30 minute interactive workshops focusing on the four key themes. The drama aims to create awareness of how social media, body image, self harm and family pressures can affect young peoples' emotional wellbeing. The workshops will challenge young people to stamp out the stigma associated with mental ill health and send a message that there is help out there and that it's ok to ask for that help.