FURNESS College has become one of the first to sign up to a new mental health and wellbeing charter.

The charter has been created by the Association of Colleges in conjunction with mental health experts.

As part of the charter, the college has pledged to promote equal opportunities and challenge mental health stigma, provide appropriate mental health training for staff and provide targeted individual mental health support where appropriate.

Director of curriculum for young people’s learning Sue Hannan, the college’s designated safeguarding lead, said: “We are a college community with a strong network of support for our staff and students.

"We know that now, more than ever, people are facing challenges with their mental health and we have a team of highly-trained and dedicated professionals across our two campuses."

One in 10 young people are said to experience a mental health problem such as anxiety or depression.