Planning for Good Mental Health & Social Inclusion

Commissioned by a major Surrey NHS Trust success the training 'Planning for Good Mental Health & Social Inclusion' has been a great success and is now running throughout 2010.  Attendees include health visitors, GPs, occupational therapists, members, social workers and day centre workers.  Library managers and staff have joined the training cohort, making for diverse and lively learning.  The training has been put together by John Vanek, an experienced Social Inclusion bridge builder and qualified Mental Health First Aid Instructor.

The value of the one-day course is that it incorporates both mental health awareness as well as social inclusion assessment tools.   Tools such as the 'web' and 'recovery star' are demonstrated along with an opportunity for attendees to do hands-on peer assessment.  Many attendees have testified to the value of learning about social inclusion assessment and how it could be used for their own clients.

Current attendees on the 'Planning for Good Mental Health & Social Inclusion' course cover a broad range of professional disciplines from across NHS and commissioning services.  These have included health visitors, social workers, a service commissioner, a GP, specialised physiotherapist and dieticians.  Recently the trainings have been joined by library staff and managers.  Employment services are also showing interest in commissioning the programme.

The course is designed to be of benefit for anyone who is a service provider, not specifically within the caring or health professions.

Typical groups who benefit from the trainings include:

Employers who wish to know more about common mental health conditions

Business owners who wish to address problems of lost productivity due to undiagnosed or diagnosed staff mental health problems

Anyone who wishes to know more about current mental health legislation and their legal rights and requirements.

Community-based workers who wish to learn about developments in social inclusion over the last fifty years.

HR practitioners who wish to gain simple assessment skills and tools for helping clients or employees make a successful return to mainstream life after illness or setback.

Health & Safety personnel keen to know more about what's out there for people who may be experiencing mild or more severe mental health challenges.

Testimonials from course attendees