International Men’s Day 2025: Andy’s Man Club Visit AKW to Say “It’s Okay to Talk”

In October, AKW invited Dan Rowe from charity Andy’s Man Club to attend a departmental meeting with some of our field-based colleagues, who primarily work alone and spend long hours travelling across the country to visit customers.

The session aimed to offer colleagues a lifeline, to let them know that they’re not alone, and that there are people they can reach out to, should they need it.

Andy’s Man Club are a men’s suicide prevention charity who provide over 270 free-to-attend peer-to-peer support groups across the UK and online, which are run by more than 2,500 volunteers.

With over 5,800 attendees every week, the charity wants to end the stigma surrounding men’s mental health and help men with the power of conversation. Their aim is simple, to help one guy, to save one life, and the only rule is that it’s okay to talk.

While Dan’s attendance at the meeting was a surprise, management have since received incredibly positive and heartwarming feedback from colleagues involved:

“I found Dan very pleasing, inviting and down to earth. He made me feel very comfortable to go along to one of the meetings they hold.”

“Thank you to the gentleman for last night’s chat, it was very informative, it is correct we drive a lot of hours on our own and I’m sure we all sulk over things. I call other colleagues when I’m bored. Friends of mine have committed suicide without talking to close people.”

“Thank you to Dan from Andy’s Man Club for the chat we had last night. It was really relaxed and helpful. It was also good to know that there is a place that I can go to when I feel like there is nowhere else to go. I now feel like I would be able to attend one of the group meetings knowing how relaxed it would be and not being judged by other people.”

“Just wanted to drop a note to say thanks for the talk for the rep from Andy’s Man Club the other day. My young nephew recently took his own life and if we had known the issues he was going through, I would definitely have taken him along. Having an option to be able to speak with other blokes when you need is important these days, so I found it very useful and may well look in on my local club.”

“Sometimes it is hard to put into words what it means to know someone is there when life gets heavy. Just knowing that support exists, people will listen, understand and care, makes even the toughest days feel a little less overwhelming. It is a quiet comfort, but it is real, and it matters more than you might realise.”

“Would just like to thank you for coming into our meeting and giving us some of your time to tell us about the groups that you’re involved with. It did give me some things to think about, especially with the role I do, it can be lonely at times, and you do think things through a lot. If I needed to in the future, it is good to know that there is a place to go to and talk to people about things. Thanks again.”

“Just wanted to say to thanks to Dan Rowe for the meeting about male suicide, it was really helpful and eye-opening. I really appreciated you sharing information about where we can go if we ever need support. It’s reassuring to know there are places locally we can turn to. Thanks again for creating space for such an important conversation.”

For more information about Andy’s Man Club, including details of your local group, please visit their website.