Adult Mental Health First Aid

Online or face to face in Wiltshire

At a glance

• 4 sessions of 4 hours, spread over 2 weeks
• Online via Zoom, or face to face in Wiltshire
• £325 per person
• Your instructor is with you for every minute of every session

Who it's for?

Anyone who wants to feel more confident supporting another person with their mental health. Many people join through their employer, and others come on their own, for work, family or their community. No previous experience needed. This is not therapy but an opportunity to improve circumstances for the individual and all those around them.

What this means for your organisation?

Trained MHFAiders® means someone in your team knows what to do when a colleague is having a tough time. Here's what that can look like in practice:

• A quiet word, early on. A colleague notices someone has gone unusually quiet and checks in, long before it turns into time off sick.
• The right signpost. An MHFAider® knows how to guide someone towards support such as their GP, an employee assistance programme or Shout, so people aren't left guessing.
• Managers with more confidence. People who've practised these conversations are less likely to avoid them, which helps teams get through busy or uncertain periods like change and restructures.
• A culture where people speak up. When colleagues see openness and less stigma modelled around them, they're more likely to ask for help sooner.
• Support for the supporters. MHFAiders® have the app, resources and community behind them, so the role stays sustainable and doesn't become a burden on a few individuals.

Why learn with me?

This is a course about people, so it works best with a real person guiding it. I'm a fully qualified MHFA England instructor, and I'm with you throughout to answer questions, guide the discussions and help you practise the skills.

People tell me I'm good at bringing a group together and building confidence. They feel safe, they feel heard, I use examples that bring the learning to life without getting personal. Everyone is seen and heard, and treated with respect and kindness in all circumstances.

What's included?

• Hard copy workbook and digital manual to keep
• Wallet-sized card with the Mental Health First Aid action plan
• Digital MHFAider® certificate
• Three years of access to the MHFAider Support App®
• Ongoing learning, quarterly webinars, exclusive events and membership of the largest MHFAider® community in England
• Membership to the Association of Mental Health First Aiders

What you'll be able to do?

As an MHFAider®, you will:

• Spot the signs of poor mental health and offer first-level support early
• Listen actively and respond with empathy
• Encourage someone towards professional help and other support
• Talk about mental health confidently, using language that reduces stigma
• Understand the role, including boundaries and confidentiality
• Look after your own wellbeing
• Use the MHFAider Support App® and the Shout text service

About the course and MHFA England

The course is developed by MHFA England with clinical practitioners and built on proven techniques. It draws on real lived experience of poor mental health, and it has been shown to increase MHFAiders'® confidence in supporting others.

It works alongside Royal Society for Public Health which looks for standards of excellence. This course can be converted into a Level 3 with a further exam through MHFA England.

Association of Mental Health First Aiders 

• The opportunity to be part of the largest MHFAider community in England
• A resource library of toolkits, guidance, animations and core mental health concepts 
• A signposting database through Hub of Hope to find local and national mental health services for additional support 
• Secure conversation journalling to make reflective notes while protecting confidentiality 
• Reminders for wellbeing check-ins with the people your MHFAiders® are supporting 
• 24/7 text support services through Shout for advice and reassurance on a mental health conversation, or to support wellbeing after a difficult conversation 
• Exclusive webinars and resources to embed and broaden mental health knowledge 
• The benefits of being part of a national movement for better mental health 

Good to know

• Please book at least 15 working days before your course so your materials arrive in time.

Our New MHFAiders® Support App.
 

Unique to this course is access to a support App. This has the following benefits:

• The MHFAider Support App® provides training resources and ongoing learning opportunities so that MHFAiders® can improve their support skills on the job. 

•   MHFAiders® can help organise their roles with reminders and secure conversation journaling, to safely reflect on their work. 

•   The MHFAider Support App® works to support the MHFAiders'® own mental health – the resources within can teach critical self-care skills, with the emotion tracker function allowing them to chart their own wellbeing. 

•   The app provides 24/7 text support for when MHFAiders® are feeling overwhelmed or need guidance for certain situations.