MUSIC therapy is being run at a mental health centre thanks to a festival’s donation.

In April, Andover Rocks hosted acts across the town for two days, raising £2,400 for Southern Health’s Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) to run music therapy sessions for clients.

Since the donation handover in May, the music therapy is up and running with an hour session each Tuesday, with funds to last one year.

CMHT support worker Aisling Gill said: “It is a really nice addition to the therapy, we couldn’t have done it ourselves. It has been great to have that support from a local person who has been through her own health issues, and inspired this festival.”

“In the hour sessions everybody can participate whether you can sing or not. This in house it is quite something different, as a group thing it is really nice to offer this.

“It is a small group but hopefully we will spread the confidence from client to client.”

Anyone under the CMHT can access the music therapy.

This is the second year Andover Rocks has funded mental health initiatives, last year donating to £3,325 for The Junction’s music project for adult mental health.

Event organiser Marie Ponting said she has started plans for next year already.

She said: “It is all well received. I think they [CMHT] were pretty overwhelmed really, they were very cooperative in the ideas I had. They were very willing to run with that set it up and see how it goes.

“I feel elated that is what we set out to do when you put the two amounts together it is around £6,000 in two years.

“It just feels like a bit of a victory we have done something really worthwhile and a good starting block for the next few years.”