{"id":1436318,"date":"2025-06-06T12:37:41","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T11:37:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/?p=1436318"},"modified":"2025-06-06T12:40:32","modified_gmt":"2025-06-06T11:40:32","slug":"queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/","title":{"rendered":"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people, and why tailored, affirming care is long overdue.<\/p>\n

WORDS BY PHILIP BALDWIN<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>

Tim Spoor is an award-winning CEO, of the newly launched mental health and wellness charity Queerwell<\/a>, and campaigner for LGBTQIA+ rights for over 30 years. I first met Tim in 2014, and greatly admired his positive impact on our community. He has been at the forefront of many national campaigns, bringing forward policies which have benefitted our community. At this difficult time, nationally and internationally, it was great to catch up with Tim and learn more about what is motivating him at the moment.<\/p>\n

I began by asking Tim about Queerwell?<\/h3>\n

Queerwell is a new and unique national charity founded in 2024 by LGBTQIA+ people with lived experience of mental health challenges, but also professional experience supporting LGBTQIA+ people accessing mental health services. Our mission is to champion positive mental health within LGBTQIA+ communities by offering inclusive, innovative, and accessible wellbeing support. We deliver therapy, coaching, skills-based workshops, and mindfulness based playshops \u2013 including puppy therapy. Our services are free or low-cost, co-created with the community, and led by experienced LGBTQIA+ qualified professionals.<\/p>\n

How does Queerwell deliver its services?<\/h3>\n

We offer our mental health and wellness services both online and in-person, depending on what works best for people. Also, where people can afford to pay a contribution to their therapy, we have a \u201ccommunity kindness\u201d access to donate approach. This helps keep the service free or low cost for others. Queerwell is about healing, building our own resilience, and joy \u2013 ensuring LGBTQIA+ people have somewhere that truly understands who they are. We need to address the mental health challenges LGBTQIA+ people face, because we are massively underserved.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Tim Spoor<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

What in particular impacts LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness?<\/h3>\n

LGBTQIA+ people face unique mental health challenges, due to persistent discrimination, social exclusion, and systemic barriers in healthcare, housing and employment. Many of us have experienced rejection, bullying, or isolation. Even within healthcare, many LGBTQIA+ individuals report poor experiences, including misgendering or a lack of cultural understanding, leading to delayed care or opting-out altogether. Mainstream services often don\u2019t meet our community\u2019s needs, while private therapy is financially out of reach. People with intersectional identities are often impacted more. At Queerwell we focus on prevention, creating a sense of community, belonging and empowerment \u2013 creating spaces where LGBTQIA+ people feel seen, heard, and supported to thrive.<\/p>\n

So, who inspires you?<\/h3>\n

Firstly, I\u2019d like to mention Maari Nastari, co-founder of Queerwell, a trans woman of colour, who we sadly lost last December. She gave 19 years of her life to providing support to LGBTQIA+ people facing homelessness, housing issues and domestic violence. Queerwell delivers its work in memory of her. Secondly, the LGBTQIA+ community also inspires me, especially those who get out of bed every day and face a world where they may experience discrimination, isolation, loneliness, anxiety and other forms of poor mental health. That is the biggest achievement \u2013 getting up and facing the world. It can be so hard for many LGBTQIA+ people, which is why Queerwell will be there for them.<\/p>\n

How can people support Queerwell?<\/h3>\n

Queerwell is creating radical, affirming support, including therapy, coaching, and creative healing spaces that actually work for our community. We\u2019re done waiting. With your help, we\u2019ll build a future where every queer person gets the care they deserve. Be the change. Please donate to our #BeWell25<\/a> campaign, so that we can launch our services this summer. For example, \u00a325 could ensure a person can access a learning space workshop or PlayShop. We want to focus on delivering our services in places where there are fewer options. You can also provide support to Queerwell as a volunteer or practitioner \u2013 all our therapists, coaches and facilitators are paid. And, you can fundraise for us.<\/p>\n

Head to Queerwell\u2019s website<\/a>, and follow them on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people, and why tailored, affirming care is long overdue. WORDS BY\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1766,"featured_media":1436693,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"templates\/feature.php","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[532,531],"tags":[21320],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nQueerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"GAY TIMES\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gaytimes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-06T11:37:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-06T11:40:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Queerwell-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1466\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"854\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Philip Baldwin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Queerwell-1.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@philipcbaldwin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@gaytimes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Philip Baldwin\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Philip Baldwin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/person\/be378478fae90b2814ff3b54298a4b27\"},\"headline\":\"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-06T11:37:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-06T11:40:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\"},\"wordCount\":11,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Queerwell\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Life\",\"Originals\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\",\"name\":\"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-06T11:37:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-06T11:40:32+00:00\",\"description\":\"Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/\",\"name\":\"GAY TIMES\",\"description\":\"Amplifying queer voices.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"GAY TIMES\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cd-gaytimes.j.layershift.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GT_ICON_ILLUSTRATOR_BLACK_RGB-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cd-gaytimes.j.layershift.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GT_ICON_ILLUSTRATOR_BLACK_RGB-1.png\",\"width\":11710,\"height\":11710,\"caption\":\"GAY TIMES\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gaytimes\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gaytimes\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/gaytimes\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/gaytimes\",\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.co.uk\/gaytimesmag\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/GayTimesChannel\",\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gay_Times\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/person\/be378478fae90b2814ff3b54298a4b27\",\"name\":\"Philip Baldwin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/db48f67b8dc066db4c73045ee4c8578d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/db48f67b8dc066db4c73045ee4c8578d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Philip Baldwin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"philipcbaldwin\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/philipcbaldwin\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/author\/philip-christopher-baldwin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity","description":"Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity","og_description":"Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/","og_site_name":"GAY TIMES","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gaytimes","article_published_time":"2025-06-06T11:37:41+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-06-06T11:40:32+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1466,"height":854,"url":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Queerwell-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Philip Baldwin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_image":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Queerwell-1.jpg","twitter_creator":"@philipcbaldwin","twitter_site":"@gaytimes","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Philip Baldwin"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/"},"author":{"name":"Philip Baldwin","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/person\/be378478fae90b2814ff3b54298a4b27"},"headline":"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity","datePublished":"2025-06-06T11:37:41+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-06T11:40:32+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/"},"wordCount":11,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#organization"},"keywords":["Queerwell"],"articleSection":["Life","Originals"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/","url":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/","name":"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2025-06-06T11:37:41+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-06T11:40:32+00:00","description":"Philip Baldwin speaks with Tim Spoor about founding Queerwell, a radical new mental health charity by and for LGBTQIA+ people.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/life\/queerwell-inside-the-radical-new-lgbtqia-mental-health-and-wellness-charity\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Queerwell: Inside the radical new LGBTQIA+ mental health and wellness charity"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/","name":"GAY TIMES","description":"Amplifying queer voices.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#organization","name":"GAY TIMES","url":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/cd-gaytimes.j.layershift.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GT_ICON_ILLUSTRATOR_BLACK_RGB-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cd-gaytimes.j.layershift.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/GT_ICON_ILLUSTRATOR_BLACK_RGB-1.png","width":11710,"height":11710,"caption":"GAY TIMES"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gaytimes","https:\/\/twitter.com\/gaytimes","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/gaytimes\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/gaytimes","https:\/\/www.pinterest.co.uk\/gaytimesmag\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/GayTimesChannel","https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gay_Times"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/person\/be378478fae90b2814ff3b54298a4b27","name":"Philip Baldwin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/db48f67b8dc066db4c73045ee4c8578d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/db48f67b8dc066db4c73045ee4c8578d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Philip Baldwin"},"sameAs":["philipcbaldwin","https:\/\/twitter.com\/philipcbaldwin"],"url":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/author\/philip-christopher-baldwin\/"}]}},"amp_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1436318"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1766"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1436318"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1436318\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1436699,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1436318\/revisions\/1436699"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1436693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1436318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1436318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gaytimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1436318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}