Introduction to Mental Health, Castleford Community Learning Centre Wednesday 17th September
This course was a general overview of Mental Health where a variety of reps, such as Union Learning Reps, Workplace Reps, Health & Safety Reps and Equality Reps, along with Community Activists attended.
They looked at factors, such as the fears, the stigma, the support and how to tackle the negativity that people with mental health have to face.
They all found the day very engaging and informative. All of them deal with and support members at very difficult and hard stages of their lives, including some who suffer with mental health issues.
The experienced tutor quickly put ground rules in place at the start of the day to ensure they all knew they were in a safe environment. They all understood that anything discussed within the course would remain strictly confidential.
The course went very well, receiving great feedback. The reps were very eager to participate and share examples. Due to the nature of the course it was important that support mechanisms were put in place.
There were many issues that arose around mental health throughout the day these included, suicide, post natal depression, overdose, Bi-polar, alcohol and drug addiction, cancer/health issues, obsessive compulsive disorder.
As a result of this successful pilot course we are hoping to roll out a more comprehensive course, where reps and activists are able to delve further into this subject matter.
If this is something that would be of interest to you, please contact Becky Feather, Union Learning Organiser, for further information.