Industry Minds was set up in 2018 by Scarlett Maltman and Cathy Read, recording podcasts exploring mental health in the creative arts, and currently in series three of their podcasts, Industry Minds also run a counselling service alongside Mary Burch BEM. Earlier this year, Scarlett and Cathy announced The Industry Minds Awards, which will be held later this month at The Piano Works West End on Sunday 22nd September, recognising those helping with mental, physical and vocal health in the industry. Taking time to talk with us, Scarlett and Cathy tell us about starting Industry Minds, their award ceremony and the feedback they’ve received.

For those that haven’t heard of Industry Minds, can you explain what it’s about?

Industry Minds is a platform that opens up the conversation on mental health in the creative arts. We hold a podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and SoundCloud, where we interview various guests in the arts, with a focus on mental health.

Alongside this, we run a counselling service, free phone/skype sessions and the lowest cost counselling sessions in London at a price of £25. For any out of work creatives struggling with the fee, we cover the cost.

Lastly, we host various live panel podcast talks, workshops, seminars and various other supportive events to support the conversation on mental health.

When did you first think about starting the business and how long did it take before uploading your first podcast?

Scarlett had the idea in early 2018, but it wasn’t until late summer when she discussed the idea to Cathy. The first episode launched in September 2018.

What’s the feedback been like since starting?

The response has been incredible from the industry. We have lovely feedback from various leading professionals and establishments in the arts, which is why the platform has been able to reach more and more people, it’s all down to the amazing support we have received. The most overwhelming feedback is from those who have reached out after counselling sessions. All we ever wanted to do was help others, to know we are doing that is an overwhelming feeling.

You hosted an event for International Women’s Day with Bumble, can you say more about it?

Yes! This event was our first ever live panel podcast, hosted by Aimee Barrett from Bumble. It took place at The Made Showroom, Covent Garden, in February. We had a wonderful panel of ladies, from wellbeing and mindset coach Amy Jessop to rising star Izuka Hoyle, and the aim was to further open up the conversation with an audience. Bumble host an event to celebrate International Women’s Day each year, so we were delighted to have been asked. The event sold out very quickly and was a brilliant gathering.

We discussed mental health in various different aspects, and it is available to listen to online.

How much time a week do you typically spend on Industry Minds?

I don’t think we have ever counted the hours we put into Industry Minds, but it is a full-time job. A typical week would be arranging clients counselling sessions, arranging our counsellors train tickets, recording a podcast with a guest, editing the podcast (usually five hours plus), uploading episodes for release, social media management, creating assets for social media, replying to anyone who needs our help across emails and socials, researching and writing up questions for the podcast, securing podcast guests and planning. This is what is included in a typical week, usually we have events on too. Currently, we are planning for an award ceremony and a live panel podcast which will take place in a few weeks. We do all this whilst in full-time jobs and auditioning, so it is full-on. I remember a while ago I didn’t message Cathy for a whole day and she messaged me very worried because it was probably the first time in over a year I hadn’t messaged her! We WhatsApp a lot!

How does it feel knowing you’re helping people with their mental health?

We feel really positive that we are helping people. It is all we ever wanted to do and we will continue to help others.

Can you talk about the counselling sessions that you offer?

We run counselling sessions in London fortnightly at a fee of £25. We also run free phone and Skype sessions. If anyone needs help financially, we can help too.

We understand you have set up and are hosting the Industry Minds Awards, how did this come about?

We wanted to celebrate one year since launching but in a way that would really help people. Running a platform can be difficult, and we know of many other platforms that offer their time for free, and we wanted to also get the word out there of all the many organisations and platforms that could potentially really help someone. We thought the award ceremony would do just this. The awards will run annually to ensure good mental health practice and recognition in the arts.

What can people expect from the night?

We have managed to pull everything together in less than three months with the help of our brilliant sponsors – Apollo Artist Management, Bumble, Base Dance Studios, Theataccounts, Still Point Space and the great team at The Piano Works West End.

The event will be a celebration of change in the arts and will be an intimate event with a gathering of many people in the theatre community who all support the change. We have eight categories of awards, some brilliant presenters including Rosalie Craig, Paul Taylor-Mills, Denise Welch and many more! And not to mention some fantastic performances from the likes of Amy Booth-Steel. It will be a celebration of how far we have all come in raising the profile of mental health in the arts and will celebrate those who work endlessly to help others. We are very proud of it.

Can you tell us about each of your theatre backgrounds and how you got into a musical career?

We are both actresses, some credits between us include Little Women (Hope Mill Theatre) and The Wizard of Oz (Pitlochry Festival Theatre). We both got into theatre from a very early age, Cathy went to PPA and then ArtsEd and Scarlett went to The Dance School of Scotland and then Italia Conti.

How did you first meet each other?

We both met in a job in Chiswick working in a gym called Barrecore whilst we were both out of acting work.

How do you like to spend your time away from work?

We are both very social and creative, so it always includes spending time with family/loved ones and being creative. We are also best mates, so we love hanging out and having time for our friendship. At the moment, we are both in a good habit of turning our phones off and spending time with loved ones.

Do you have any live events you’ll be hosting or attending in the next few months?

We do! We are hosting a live panel podcast on Monday 23rd of September at The VUE Cinema, Piccadilly at The Raindance Festival. We are also on the panel at Equity in October.

Is there anything you’d like to say to people in the industry who are struggling at the moment with their mental health?

That you are not alone. If you are struggling, please reach out for help, you can email us if you ever need a free counselling session and there are many other brilliant organisations out there that are there to help and listen. Someone is always here to listen.

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https://www.industryminds.co.uk