What is Mental Health First Aid?
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an internationally recognised training course which teaches people how to spot the signs and symptoms of mental ill health and provide help on a first aid basis.
MHFA won’t teach you to be a therapist, but just like physical first aid, it will teach you to listen, reassure and respond, even in a crisis.
Adult MHFA courses are for everyone aged 16 upwards. Every MHFA course is delivered by a quality assured instructor who has attended an Instructor Training programme accredited by the Royal Society for Public Health, and is trained to keep people safe and supported while they learn.
Our aim is to support those working with children and young people, be they teachers, parents or other professionals, none of whom can effectively support children and young people unless their own wellbeing is maintained and enhanced.
What will I learn?
Learning takes place through a mix of group activities, presentations and discussions. What you learn will depend on the length of course you attend:
When you complete your course you will get a certificate of attendance and a manual to keep and refer to whenever you need it.
How will attending an MHFA course help?
Research and evaluation shows that taking part in an MHFA course:
- Raises awareness and mental health literacy
- Reduces stigma around mental ill health
- Boosts knowledge and confidence in dealing with mental health issues
- Promotes early intervention which enables recovery
While the government has committed to fund over 3,000 places on MHFA England Youth MHFA One Day courses, we want to make a positive contribution to raising the bar even higher. So, in 2019–2020, in co-operation with the Sevenoaks Partnership, we’ll be running both one and two day Youth and Adult Mental Health First Aid courses. Our intention is to do what we can to ensure that the health and wellbeing of as many children and young people as possible, as well as those who work with them, is not only maintained, but improved.
Places on each course will be only £30, sufficient to cover the cost of the manual and other training materials that each participant will receive.
To find out more about the courses we offer, please contact us.
