COMM/ON 18, an event exploring the issue of mental health amongst freelance workers, will take place on Wednesday 14 March from 2pm – 5pm at the Black Box in Belfast as part of Imagine, The Belfast Festival of Ideas and Politics.

Founded by Adam Turkington from Seedhead Arts, a freelancer himself, the first COMM/ON event took place in March 2017.  Adam explains:

“While there are numerous advantages to working as a freelancer such as greater flexibility and control over the work you do, there are obvious downsides too such as lack of security and isolation, which can have a negative impact on mental health. 

The aim of COMM/ON is to bring freelancers of all backgrounds – artists, bakers, tailors, brewers, designers, baristas, entertainers, etc. – together in one space to share their experiences, support each other, network and collaborate. Our hope for COMM/ON is that it will start a conversation which improves the working lives of freelancers and celebrates the contribution that they make to society.”

According to a recent report from the Office for National Statistics, “…the rapid growth of self-employment has been a pronounced feature of the UK labour market in recent years. The number of self-employed increased from 3.3 million people (12.0% of the labour force) in 2001 to 4.8 million (15.1% of the labour force) in 2017.”

COMM/ON 18 will feature a range of mental health professionals and researchers who will be looking at the mental health issues that affect freelancers in particular and what can be done to address them.

COMM/ON 18 is free and open to all freelance workers, but places are limited so please register in advance – click here for tickets or search “COMM/ON 18” on Facebook to find out more.