BLUES players and staff joined schoolchildren at Roots Hall to launch a three-year campaign tackling attitudes to mental illness.

Pupils from Cecil Jones College, Chase High School and students from the South East Essex College and the Vineyard youth group were all at Southend United’s ground for the launch.

The South Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust organised the event and youngsters displayed posters to create a mosiac which read Let’s Tackle Stigma on one side and Time to Change on the other.

Mike Waddington is the trust’s head of patient and public involvement.

He said: “As well as the schools, we had users and carers involved with this and Southend manager Steve Tilson.”