College Staff Trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid

Most people are familiar with the idea of physical first aid courses that teach the skills and knowledge required to recognise and respond to life-threatening emergencies and provide a first aid response across various situations.

Mental Health First Aid training adopts a similar approach.

Last week during our professional development week, we had 25 staff ranging from teachers, administration and support staff complete the Youth Mental Health First Aid course over two days.

The course teaches participants how to provide initial support to a young person (aged 12–18) who may be experiencing a mental health problem or mental health crisis, until professional help is received, or the crisis resolves.

Course participants learn about the signs and symptoms of common mental health problems in adolescents, how to recognise and respond to an emerging or worsening mental health problem, and the treatments and supports available.

Using a practical, evidence-based action plan, course participants learnt how to approach a young person they are concerned about and initiate a conversation about those concerns. Participants also learnt how to offer initial support and information and how to help a young person seek professional help or other support.

Here’s what some of the staff had to say:

"It was helpful learning about how to help students who may be going through a hard time. It surprised me the statistics of how many young people are diagnosed with mental illnesses." - Miss Emma Verus - Maths and English Teacher

"I enjoyed working as a whole school team to learn strategies to support our students and their mental health. Something that surprised me was the statistics for mental health - that nearly 2 in 5 young people (aged 16-24) will suffer from a mental illness. And this is only the reported figures. I’d love to explore more to improve my strategies for supporting youth struggling with anxiety." - Mrs Rebecca Touzel – SLSO Secondary

"I found it helpful to gain a greater awareness of what resources are out there to support young people and learn more strategies for helping those around me. I found it surprising how much better people’s long-term outcomes are if mental health is addressed earlier in life. I’d like to explore more ways to adopt approaches in the classroom that support wellbeing and healthy thinking." - Mr Ben Harrison- Teacher Year 6

Adults who complete the course become Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAiders), equipped with the knowledge, confidence, and skills to provide someone with mental health issues information and support when it matters most.

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