Mental Health First Aid

Youth Mental Health First Aid

Sadly one in 10 children have been clinically diagnosed with a mental health disorder in the UK – that is around three children in every class.

This brings into focus our collective responsibility to help students maintain and manage their mental health. We all know that good mental health is absolutely vital if our students are to learn and thrive.

E-ACT launched its Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) programme in September 2017, embarking upon a mission to train every member of E-ACT staff to understand and recognise the early warning signs of mental health problems.

Most schools in England train one or two member s of staff in Mental Health First Aid, but  it  is so important that our students can turn to any member of staff when they need support . That’s why we are working to train every single adult in our academy, from classroom teachers to our academy office staff.

The programme has also involved working closely with students to devise a bespoke mental health curriculum tailored to our academy’s particular needs.

We’re proud that (number) of our staff are now trained Mental Health First Aiders, with more staff being trained every term.

Parkwood E-ACT Academy’s Mental Health First Aiders are:

Kim McDonald

Daniel Moat

Nicole Henry

Daniel Cheatle

Ross Thompson

Jackie Doughty

John Hallam

Justine  Da Silva

Helen Child

Emma Smythe

Matt Tyers

Paula Smythe

Gemma Cottingham

Gregg Henderson

Delyse Fealey

Jenny Montgomery

Lucy Foster

Mike Rogers

Darren Butterworth

Farshad Ai

Lyndsay Oxley

Julie Moat

Maria Burton

Kristina Birchall

Kerry Ratcliffe

Daniel Clayton

Supritha Suresh

Donna Tewson

Siobhan Eastwood

Martin Harrison

Zoe Smart

Scott Swallow

Marie Richards

Kit Thorne

Paul Howard

Wendy Kinsley

Lee Haywood

Olivia Cousins

Sarah Windle

Charlotte Gould

Louise Rhodes

Lucy Byrom

Sarah Husband.

Adult Mental Health First Aid

In the UK, there is an estimated 4.6 million people in work who may have a common mental health problem. That equates to 1 in 6.8 employed people experiencing mental health problems in the workplace (OECD, 2013). Between one in five and one in six working age adults is depressed, anxious or experiencing stress-related problems at any one time (MHFA, 2016). In 2013 the Chief Medical Officer estimates that around 70 million working days are lost every year because of mental ill health, costing Britain between £70bn and £100bn.

Everybody experiences mental health, however mental health and wellbeing (Being comfortable, healthy or happy) sits along a continuum which we all move along and up and down. The impact that mental health and wellbeing has on employees is a significant concern that E-ACT is very aware of.  By partaking in the Adult MHFA training E-ACT are seeking to create a climate where people feel confident to talk openly about the problems they are experiencing and trust their employer to do the right thing by them.

E-ACT have trained 5 members of staff to become Adult Mental Health First Aid Instructors who are able to train key members of staff in each academy in Adult MHFA.

Parkwood’s Adult Mental Health First Aiders are:

Rachel Larden

Nicola Stubbs

Nik Oxley

Davinia Reynolds Brown