Would you know how to help?
Let’s start with the statistics. One in ten young people experience a mental health issue at any one time. For those aged 5-19 suicide is the second most common cause of death, and a record number of children contacted Childline with suicidal thoughts in 2016/17.
In an average group of 30 15 year olds:
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Seven are likely to have been bullied
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Six may be self-harming
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One could have experienced the death of a parent
Record levels of young people are struggling. Academic pressure, social media, bullying, poverty, lack of availability of professional mental health support – all have been named as contributing to this epidemic of poor mental health in our young people.
It’s clear that young people are not getting the support they need. Key figures in a young person’s life – parents, family members, teachers, tutors, carers, youth workers – can often spot when a young person is struggling but may not know how best to help.
Youth Mental Health First Aid training
Our Youth Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) courses are for anyone who works with, lives with or supports young people aged 8-18. We train the adults in a young person’s life to have the skills and confidence to step in, offer first aid and guide them towards the support they need. In doing so, they can speed up a young person’s recovery, stop issues from developing into a crisis, and ultimately save lives.
But more than that, by giving these adults the information and skills to look after their own mental health, we want them to set an example for young people. We want adults to be able to show young people that mental ill health is a part of life in just the same way as physical ill health, that it’s OK to talk about and it’s OK to ask for help.
We hope that by giving people the tools to open up these conversations, we can empower them to create mentally healthy, supportive environments in their families, schools, youth groups and communities.
Let’s create a future where we all know how to look after our own mental wellbeing, so preventable issues don’t arise in the first place. A future where every young person has access to support if they need it.
For more information email info@orangeboxtraining.com, call 01429 717000 opt3 or via our online booking system