Focus: Mental health

The Crown Princess clearly demonstrated her interest in this area when she served as patron of the nationwide humanitarian telethon campaign on behalf of mental health in 2004. The telethon campaign raised funds for the Church City Mission and the Norwegian Council for Mental Health. Since then, the Crown Princess has been deeply concerned with the issue, and is the patron of the Norwegian Council for Mental Health. She has also served as a member of the board of the Church City Mission.

Banquet at Skaugum

In connection with the telethon campaign in 2004, a banquet was organised at the Skaugum Estate, the residence of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess in Asker.

Every autumn since, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess have invited guests from all over the country to the Skaugum Estate. All those invited are in various ways concerned with or affected by the issue of mental health. The collaborating partners on these occasions work each in their own way to create a warmer, more tolerant and more inclusive society - such as the Church City Mission, The Salvation Army, the Landsforeningen for barnehjemsbarn (national association for children in care) and the street magazine Erlik Oslo.

The banquet has become a yearly tradition, and the 10th anniversary was celebrated in 2014.

Norwegian Council for Mental Health

Crown Princess Mette-Marit became patron of the Norwegian Council for Mental Health in 2001. Over the years, she has undertaken a number of visits and met people with mental health problems and their families.

The Crown Princess also participates at annual events in connection with the celebration of World Mental Health Day on 10 October. World Mental Health Day is an international event to promote awareness and understanding of mental health and mental illness. World Mental Health Day has been celebrated every year since 1992.

The Norwegian Council for Mental Health is an independent humanitarian organisation with 25 member organisations. The Council works to achieve the best quality of life possible for children and young people with mental health problems and their families. The organisation promotes access to local, cohesive help, works to achieve an inclusive working life and addresses challenges related to the use of compulsory measures.