Mind Over Mountains
2202. Alex Staniforth
Alex Staniforth, from Cumbria, co-founded ‘Mind Over Mountains’, a charity that offers professional mental health support through therapeutic outdoor experiences.
Alex has faced his own challenges with mental health, epilepsy, stammering and bullying, but found that outdoor activities helped him to deal with these issues. Wanting to help others in the same way, he was inspired to set up ‘Mind Over Mountains’ in 2018, which later became a registered charity in 2020. Alex has undertaken a number of physical challenges to raise money, reaching over £100,000, and awareness for mental health. Alex is the fastest person to ‘Climb the UK’ by reaching the highest point of all 100 UK counties in 72 days, a challenge which he completed to break the stigma surrounding mental health.
Through ‘Mind Over Mountains’, Alex organises outdoor experiences, including hikes and retreats, that restore mental health naturally. ‘Mind Over Mountains’ uses the outdoors, coupled with professional support, to offer a sustainable approach to help people restore resilience, build confidence and improve their physical and mental health.
Alex said:
“I’m absolutely delighted to be recognised as a Point of Light. I’ve seen firsthand how our work at Mind Over Mountains has supported the well-being of so many people. There’s so much work still to do – but this is an amazing boost to keep going and help more people access our ‘natural health service’.”
Photo Credit: Daniel Toal
Find out more about ‘Mind Over Mountains’