A NEW mental health charity is trying to raise £5,000 through Crowdfunding.

Out of the Blues will raise money to support research in the North into mood disorders.

It is being supported by the Northern Centre for Mood Disorders, which involves the Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust and Newcastle University.

To be registered with the Charity Commission, backers need to raise an initial £5,000.

Hamish McAllister-Williams, an honorary consultant psychiatrist at the Trust, is leading the campaign.

He said: “Mood disorders, such as depression, devastate people’s lives and lead to massive costs to society through lost work, disability payments and health care.

“Despite this, funding for research into the causes and treatment of mood disorders lags way behind other illnesses.

“For every person suffering from cancer, there is over £1,500 of funding for research, but for every person with a mental illness only £9.75. This is in part due to enormous differences in the amount of charitable funding for research into mental illnesses.

“We hope that this (Out of the Blues) will start addressing the dreadful inequality there is in funding for research between mental and physical illnesses. Such research is essential to improve people’s lives, decrease suffering and reduce costs to society.”

For more information, visit mood-disorders.co.uk or crowdfunding.justgiving.com/5000campaign