Tom Judge, 61, will walk from the UK to Spain in summer to raise funds and crucial awareness.

If you’re having a chilly coastal walk between The Stray Café in Redcar and Saltburn Pier – and you happen to see a man walking with a fridge on his back – do not be alarmed!

It’s just Thomas Judge, 61, training for his epic walk from Middlesbrough to Spain this summer – all in aid of raising awareness around suicide and mental ill health.

Tom is also embarking upon the epic challenge with the goal of raising £200,000 for First Contact UK Mental Health, the CIC he set up which is soon to be granted charity status.

As someone who lives with complex PTSD, Tom knows only too well the difficulties people who suffer from anxiety and depression face.

However, he’s determined to show everyone there is life with mental ill health, by completing the 1,400 miles walk in 20-mile stages.

Through the walk, Tom has the potential to set a new Guinness World Record – but it’s the symbolism of the feat that is more important to him.

“The weight of the fridge – which will be 45kg – represents the weight people who are suffering from mental ill health carry on their shoulders,” Tom said.

“Through this charity walk, I am raising funds for my mental health charity and raising awareness of the impact mental health issues have on people through our #breakthesilence campaign.

“During the walk to Spain, we will be visiting eight football clubs – four in Spain and four in the UK and we are hoping to get their backing too.”

The organisation is about to sign a collaboration agreement with the Spanish Red Cross to provide support services for people affected by mental ill health.

Tom’s link with Spain came about after Tom’s first walk from Middlesbrough to Benidorm in 2022, which was spotted by Mayor of the Spanish resort Antonio Perez Perez, who came out to meet him along with the British vice consul Elizabeth Bell MBE at the end of his journey.

First Contact Mental Health UK currently operates as a community interest company (CIC) but is due to get charity status in March.

This will pave the way for Tom to be able to collect text donations during the walk, which will help massively with fundraising.

His organisation supports people leaving mental health services with the transition to daily life after NHS support ends.

With First Contact UK Mental Health, support is open-ended and includes the equine therapy, group walks, 14 exchange programs with organisations in Spain, 10-day walks on the famous Camino de Santiago, open water dips and gym sessions.

All of these are also open to caregivers looking after a loved one experiencing mental ill health.
While he is excited about the growth of the charity in 2025, he admits: “There is so much to do and we are so far behind other countries it’s extremely worrying.

“My life now is dedicated to raising awareness and helping people – I wouldn’t want anyone else to go through what me and my family went through.”

Speaking of his own experience, Thomas says: “I set the First Contact UK Mental Health CIC up because of my own illness.

“I was a very active entrepreneur and at the age of 50, I was struck down with complex PTSD and disassociation disorders – and that’s why I wanted to set something up to help others overcome day to day challenges.

“From my point of view, there was absolutely nothing that was sustainable for me after I came out of services that was open-ended in terms of after care and rehabilitation support.”

Tom says he lived with his trauma for many years “deflecting it” for 35 years, before he “hit a brick wall and slid down it”.

“I’m lucky to still be here,” he says.

“As an entrepreneur, I had been very successful – but I now understand my work ethic and success was a deflection from my trauma.

“In a way, what I had been through drove me, but what I had been through also had to hit me negatively sooner or later.”

Today, his overarching aim is for his charity to provide people with a facility they can use for as long as they need, with suitable recovery support that will enable them to remain stable for longer, as well as providing fully-funded meaningful activities.

Tom is also keen to promote another charity through the walk – The Cameron Laidlaw Foundation, which was set up in memory of 16-year-old Cameron by his mum Stacey Baldam, 38, after he took his own life.

Tom says: “Stacey is a true inspiration of mine. I think it’s important to spread the message that there is help available and it’s okay to talk – particularly amongst young men who might not know where to turn.”

Cameron, who was a keen boxer, battled with mental ill health and lived with autism and a learning disability.

Through Cameron’s story, Stacey is now determined to raise awareness, until every young voice is heard and young people are able to get the right support for mental ill health or with living with neurodiversity.

The Cameron Laidlaw Foundation holds drop in sessions every Tuesday between 4.30pm and 6.30pm at Grangetown Generations centre and Library, supporting people of all ages affected by mental ill health and identifying as neurodiverse.

The group, called Cameron’s Way, costs £1.50 to attend and includes food, drink and activities, following the principles ‘you are heard,’ ‘you are valued’ and ‘you are safe’.

Both Tom and Stacey believe there are limitations to current mental health services, which typically provide a limited number of counselling or therapy sessions following a mental health diagnosis – which can take a long time to come.

“In the UK, we are also experiencing a lot of mental health services being taken away or people facing incredibly long waiting lists,” Tom says.

“We are doing a couple of pilot schemes around the country to see how a respite facility would work, so that people can come out of therapy and go away for a three or four-day break, somewhere quiet where there are not too many people – and this facility is already on offer in Spain.

“The idea is to ease people back into normal life and gently work with patients alongside frontline services.”

As he embarks on his challenge, Tom is hoping to engage local businesses, sports clubs and celebrities in what he is doing.

He hopes that at some point, he will be able to have his photograph taken with Boro central defender George Edmundson – aka the fridge!

He also believes it is important to get very young people engaged in conversations around mental health issues and is inviting interested primary schools to get children to draw a picture of him and his fridge – and to come up with a name for the fridge too!

You can find the charity on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/firstcontactukmentalhealth
For more information or pictures for this story, contact Sarah Walker on 07896 894538.

Source: SASS Media, our PR Partner for One Man and His Fridge
https://sassmedialtd.co.uk/news/one-man-and-his-fridge-take-on-epic-mental-health-challenge/

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