Out of the office, into the outdoors – we stepped into spring for Student Minds 

On a sunny Wednesday afternoon in May, the Kortext team at Bournemouth HQ took a break from their desks and made their way down to the beach, enjoying an extra hour outdoors – all in support of Student Minds, the UK’s number one student mental health charity.  

The lunchtime treks took us beyond Bournemouth with colleagues all around the world dusting off their trainers and taking to the trails in an effort to fit 10,000 purposeful steps into their busy schedules. 

The Student Minds’ Step into Spring challenge spans the whole month of May to encourage supporters to set their own daily activity goal and ask for sponsorship for their efforts.  

At Kortext, we chose our Step into Spring team day to be Wednesday 14 May, not only because the forecast read hot and sunny (lucky win!), but mostly because it landed right in the middle of Mental Health Awareness Week around the world. 

This year’s theme for the week focused on community and the transformative impact it can have on mental health outcomes.

By getting to know more of our Kortext community on our team walk, we hope we inspire you to consider not only your own support network, but university communities around the world who are working hard to help brave students achieve their higher education goals in spite of their mental health challenges. 

According to recent research, the prevalence of student mental health disorders in the UK is five times higher than it was than a decade ago, currently standing at 5.8% of students reporting a diagnosed mental health condition. 

Worryingly, prevalence increases to 57% in the 2023 Student Minds survey where respondents could remain anonymous and self-report mental health difficulties. Statistics like these highlight the growing need for mental health resource in higher education. 

With this in mind, our team are proud to announce that we have raised £537 for Student Minds’ incredible work in addressing the mental health crisis and working with institutions to widen access to support services. 

To further reward our efforts, Kortext topped up our total to a generous £1,037, every penny working towards our shared vision that no student be held back by their mental health.  

Kortext proudly accomplished: 

• 700,000 total steps  

• 300+ miles (the same distance as London to Paris)! 

• £1,037 raised for Student Minds 

So, while the sun is well and truly out for the summer, we challenge YOU to get involved!

Head over to the Student Minds website to see how you can help make a valuable difference to student mental health.