Get involved in the Youth MHFA in Schools programme

As part of the Youth Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) in Schools programme, the Department of Health has committed to fund over 3,000 places on the Youth MHFA One Day course over the next three years, so that by 2020 at least one person in every state secondary school in England has MHFA skills. 100 Youth MHFA One Day courses are being delivered by MHFA England (CIC) in this first year of the programme, which equates to over 1,000 places available – a similar number of courses will be delivered in years two and three of the programme. One representative from each state secondary school may attend a course, with the exception of host schools, who are offered four additional places.   Please find attached fact sheet for further details.

Under the terms of this government funded scheme, all state secondary schools qualify to receive one free place on a Youth MHFA One Day course. Additional training can be booked independently of this government funded programme, however unfortunately additional funding is not available to support this.

Year one of the Youth MHFA in Schools programme was launched in April 2017 and the first course deliveries took place soon after in June with further deliveries continuing up to December.  To date, we have delivered 78 courses, training over 800 Youth MHFA Champions.

The Youth MHFA One Day course itself has been designed specifically with schools and colleges in mind – as a one day course, it fits perfectly into school inset training days and busy school timetables. Topics covered include; an introduction to mental health, depression and anxiety, suicide and psychosis and self-harm and eating disorders. The course includes a mix of presentations, group discussions and workshop activities, with MHFA England instructors providing a safe learning environment where participants are supported throughout the whole session. Everyone who completes the course receives a copy of the Youth MHFA Schools and Colleges manual which is an excellent reference and support resource. Participants also receive a certificate to say they are a Youth MHFA Champion – someone who is skilled in understanding how to spot the signs and symptoms of mental health issues in young people and who will have the confidence to guide the young person to a place of support.

Courses are currently available to book for the new year (February-December 2018) so if schools have capacity to host courses in these months, or would like to register for its free place, please get in touch with the MHFA England Schools team by emailing schools@mhfaengland.org.

To find out more about the initiative visit mhfaengland.org/mhfa-centre/schools-programme.