Cornwall has a vibrant and varied landscape ranging from craggy cliffs and turquoise seas to lush areas of woodland. This is the perfect environment for adventure, play and learning through climbing
Rise and Climb CIC is an organisation based in Cornwall helping people with their mental health through the power of climbing(Image: Jacob Dersley)
Cornwall is in the throes of a mental health crisis fuelled by the unique pressures of limited resources, rurality and an ageing population.
The county sadly boasts the highest suicide rate in men in the UK while services are struggling with funding and capacity to reach everyone who needs support.
Voluntary organisations, charities and CIC all over Cornwall are doing the best they can to fill the gaps the NHS is not able to fill in. Men’s support groups such as Man Down run informal, peer-led talking groups to support men’s mental health.
Other groups like The Wave Project in Newquay use the power of surfing and the ocean to help young people, adults or veterans, deal with mental issues – and reconnect with themselves and others too.
“We’re also living in an increasingly disconnected society where isolation is becoming normalised,” Yasmin Clark, a mental health professional and keen rock climber said. “This is why our space for people to connect while learning about physical, social and psychological wellbeing is so important.”
Rise and Climb directors Thom Hill, Yasmin Clark and Ali Skeats (Image: Jacob Dersley)
Yasmin, Ali Skeats and Thom Hill are the founders of Rise and Climb, a community interest company they set up last year to help people improve their mental health through the power of climbing.
Registered in April 2025, the organisation started running its first sessions at The Tide climbing centre near Padstow in January this year.
“It’s the Chalk Effect 2.0,” joked Ali, in reference to another mental health climbing organisation all three of them volunteered at which sadly could not continue when its founder found it too much.
“Jordan Rimmington (one of the directors of the Chalk Effect Climbing Project CIC) was struggling to run it,” Ali explained. “I think life was getting in the way too much. We wanted to run it but he had already taken it down at Companies House so we decided to set up our own project.
“The Chalk Effect had been really successful so we decided to bounce off it with Rise and Climb. Yas is a mental health professional and wrote a programme of work for the British Mountaineering Council (BMC) using climbing as a tool to help improve people’s mental health.
“There is increasing evidence that climbing helps to improve mental health through increased focus, mindfulness and mind/body connection.”
Rise and Climb CIC is an organisation based in Cornwall helping people with their mental health through the power of climbing(Image: Jacob Dersley)
But why climbing? Climbing is a full-body workout which enhances muscle strength, cardiovascular health and flexibility which also helps to ground you in the moment to find solutions to a route on the wall you are looking to climb.
“We view the climbing wall as a playground for physical and emotional exploration. Working out how to climb a route, how to fall, and how to laugh at failures are all part of it,” Ali said.
Rise and Climb currently runs seven groups for people aged 18+. That’s 50 or so people aged 20 to 70 taking part in regular rope climbing and bouldering sessions at The Tide.
Ali explained how several of the participants are struggling with depression and anxiety. Others are struggling with social connections and loneliness.
“It’s an opportunity to meet people with other life experiences. Climbing brings people together,” she said. “Despite the huge range of ages, we already see nice bonds forming and sharing happening between people.
“We run each session at people’s pace. Some groups don’t want to climb but just want to sit and chat and solve their issues together and talk to each other. That’s fine. We don’t push it. They’re talking. It’s valuable to their mental health. That’s what it’s all about.
“We found that some groups want to continue to meet up outside our sessions. That’s great.”
Rise and Climb CIC is an organisation based in Cornwall helping people with their mental health through the power of climbing(Image: Jacob Dersley)
Rise and Climb held two outdoor sessions this summer which have been popular in bringing participants out in nature and out of their comfort zone.
“Climbing is an excellent tool to manage your anxiety and explore different physical sensations. It’s about understanding the technique to manage anxiety and hearing from other people and how they manage their own anxiety.
“At The Tide we use the ropes wall a lot. It helps build trust in your belayer, trust in the system and helps you work through your own coping techniques when faced with new situations such as stress, fear and panic. It helps stretch people’s social comfort zone.”
Ali said Rise and Climb is now looking at new funding strands to run more women’s and men’s groups from this autumn and hopefully run sessions for children too in a near future.
To find out more about Rise and Climb check out their website at https://www.riseandclimb.co.uk/ as well as their social media on Facebook and Instagram.
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