Citizens Advice Wokingham

Mental Health First Aid

We’re pleased to be able to deliver MHFA England’s Online Adult Mental Health First Aid course, we can train Mental Health First Aiders working or living across England, via our Online Learning Hub.

Every day we support people who are struggling with their mental health. 

People across Wokingham Borough rely on us to support issues around welfare benefits, debt, housing, employment law, relationships & family, consumer, immigration and much more. 

We know that those issues can and often have a huge impact on our mental health and wellbeing. People living with mental ill-health can be disproportionately impacted by issues around money, for example, which can affect many parts of daily life, including employment and housing. You can find out more information about that here.

We also know that Mental Health affects 1 in 4 of us every year. To more effectively support our communities across Wokingham and our team, we have made mental health a key focus of our strategy.

Thanks to the funding, we can train:
– 60 Citizens Advice staff and volunteers across Berkshire as Mental Health First Aiders for free before August 2021, thanks to Berkshire Community Foundation
– 72 charity staff and volunteers across Wokingham Borough as Mental Health First Aiders for free before July 2021, thanks to The National Lottery Community Fund

From December 2020 to February 2021, we are also training 5 cohorts of staff and members at Wokingham Borough Council.

Please contact us if you would like to take advantage of our reduced-rate Mental Health First Aid adult online courses.

Please contact mhfa@citizensadvicewokingham.org.uk for any enquiries or use the booking enquiry form on this page to express an interest in our course.

Please see current available open dates below. We can also put on full courses for an individual organisation (or a group of organisations with a lead sponsor) for a minimum of 12 delegates and a maximum of 16 per course.

We deliver both the two-day mental health first aider and one-day MHFA champion courses, please see below:
 
MHFA Adult Online two day course – training first aiders

This online course qualifies you as a Mental Health First Aider, giving you:

  • An in-depth understanding of mental health and the factors that can affect wellbeing
  • Practical skills to spot the triggers and signs of mental health issues
  • Confidence to step in, reassure and support a person in distress
  • Enhanced interpersonal skills such as non-judgemental listening
  • Knowledge to help someone recover their health by guiding them to further support – whether that’s self-help resources, through their employer, the NHS, or a mix
Cost

MHFA England value this course at £300 per person.

Through Citizens Advice Wokingham we are delivering this course at a subsidised rate for:
– Charity/non-profit – £120 per individual space
– Individuals/Business/Local authority/others – £150 per individual space

We can also deliver a full course just for your organisation, for a minimum of 12 delegates, and a maximum of 16 delegates. 

Please contact mhfa@citizensadvicewokingham.org.uk for more information.

Format
  • This is an online course delivered through the MHFA England Online Learning Hub
  • Learning takes place through four live training sessions, over two days, with self-learning activities in between
  • Each session is built around a Mental Health First Aid action plan
  • We limit numbers to 16 people per course so that we can keep people safe and supported while they learn
Takeaways

Everyone who completes the course gets:

  • A certificate of attendance to say you are a Mental Health First Aider
  • A manual to refer to whenever you need it
  • A quick reference card for the Mental Health First Aid action plan
  • A workbook including a helpful toolkit to support your own mental health
 

 

 

MHFA Adult Online one-day course – training champions relating to workplace mental health

This online course qualifies you as an MHFA Champion, giving you:

  • An understanding of common mental health issues
  • Knowledge and confidence to advocate for mental health awareness
  • Ability to spot signs of mental ill health
  • Skills to support positive wellbeing
 
Cost

MHFA England value this course at £200 per person.

Through Citizens Advice Wokingham we are delivering this course at a subsidised rate for:
– Charity/non-profit – £100 per individual space
– Individuals/Business/Local authority/others – £120 per individual space

We can also deliver a full course just for your organisation, for a minimum of 12 delegates, and a maximum of 16 delegates. 

Please contact mhfa@citizensadvicewokingham.org.uk for more information.

Format
  • This is an online course delivered video conferencing
  • Learning takes place through a mix of presentations, group discussions and workshop activities
  • We limit numbers to 16 people per course so that we can keep people safe and supported while they learn
Takeaways

Everyone who completes the course gets:

  • A certificate of attendance to say you are an MHFA champion
  • A manual to refer to whenever you need it
  • A quick reference card for the Mental Health First Aid action plan
  • A workbook including a helpful toolkit to support your own mental health

Feedback from delegates:

One of our cohorts of Wokingham Borough Council staff trained as Mental Health First Aiders for Adults.

“The course was excellent, it ran at a really good pace and even though we overran it did not feel like you wanted it to end. Some courses you sit at the end of the day clock watching but this was not the case here. Both instructors were engaging and pleasant to listen to.“

“The course was delivered extremely well and lots of open communication was facilitated. I was never belittled or made to feel silly for asking a question or getting something wrong. The course was structured very well and easy to follow. The resources are of high quality and there is opportunity for further learning after the course. Jake, Lauren and all of the delegates made this a very enjoyable learning experience and I will be recommending it to anyone who has an interested in becoming a MHFA.”

“Hi Jake, thank you for the training last week. You have a very calming way of teaching which is very good for this type of course.“

“I have had an excellent experience on the course with excellent opportunity for discussion with others, case studies, and practising use of ALGEE. The course really has given me hope for a better future for everyone, and will greatly increase my confidence supporting my customers.”

“Jake was very knowledgeable on the topic and really brought things to life when talking about his examples. He delivered the course excellently and kept the pace going throughout the 2 days.“

“brilliant course, brilliant instructor – highly recommended“

“Very useful and practical course, in which I have learned some really helpful skills and knowledge to help approach and support people in crises and people with mental health problems. Really well led by Jake, with his personal experiences, background and expertise providing us with great opportunities to learn and ask questions to ground our learning.”

“In my opinion, this was an excellent course. It was delivered clearly and the instructor really knew ‘his stuff’. He was approachable and non-judgemental. I really enjoyed the course.”

“I just wanted to say thank you again for a fabulous course. You have a lovely delivery style.”

Our first 16 local charity staff and volunteers trained via funding from Berkshire Community Foundation and The National Lottery Community Fund.