A MEN’S mental health charity which benefited from a Dumbarton amateur football team’s fund-raising efforts last year says it is continuing to help at least two people every day throughout the pandemic.

Men Matter Scotland, which reached its one year anniversary last month, works to promote wellbeing and prevent suicide by providing a safe space for those in need.

Players, coaches and officials from Dumbarton Academy FP AFC raised around £3,000, split between Men Matter and the club’s own coffers, by scaling Ben Lomond twice in the space of a day last August.

The charity recently asked people to walk 10,000 steps a day in March to raise vital funds for its suicide prevention support service.

Founder Peter Divers said the charity has seen an increase in demand for support since the beginning of the pandemic.

He added: “We’re getting at least two new men contacting us every day. It’s not just men either - we get women contacting us because they are concerned about their partners.

“We’re also able to support families. We can get food parcels made up and they can come and collect them if they are low on food.

“We’ve seen a big increase in demand for support since the pandemic started. Lockdown has flipped everyone’s world upside down.

“We try and calm men down and reassure them that everything is going to be all right.

“That’s sometimes all they need to hear because it can be a really scary time.”

To find out more, visit Men Matter Scotland on Facebook.