STAFF at Blackwell’s Bookshop in Oxford allowed a special dog into the store as they highlighted mental health issues.

Sirius the 4ft resin statue has been travelling around schools in Oxfordshire to raise awareness of mental health problems, in association with the charity SANE and Richard Venables, the former High Sheriff of Oxfordshire.

READ AGAIN: Blackwell's Bookshop hosts festival highlighting mental health

The resin model has been created in reference to Winston Churchill’s phrase ‘black dog’, which indicated feelings of depression.

Oxford Mail:

Yesterday the model arrived at the children’s department at the Broad Street store.

Mr Venables and Marjorie Wallace, the CEO of Sane, talked about Sirius’s journey around Oxfordshire and the importance of mental health awareness for children and young people.

Oxford Mail:

Blackwell’s Mental Health Festival, featuring a series of speakers, started on Monday and runs until Sunday. Staff at the bookshop are raising funds for mental health charity Restore with a sponsored run, bike ride and read-a-thon.