We are pleased to have official Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAiders®) as part of the SUPC team. Our MHFAiders® play an important role in helping to boost employee wellbeing and offering crucial support to colleagues. Their training has equipped them with mental health knowledge, awareness and skills to make a lasting difference to our organisation and staff.
For information on how your organisation can support employees with wellbeing, visit the Mental Health First Aid England website here.
We’ve recently registered all SUMS Group employees to the Help@hand. This will provide support to colleagues and their families with access to a range of health and wellbeing services, including mental health counselling.
Learn more about why our colleagues chose to become MHFAiders®
Helen Bolton
I was keen to become trained as a Mental Health First Aider as it encourages fostering early intervention, reducing the stigma of mental health issues and creating a supportive work environment. Being supportive to colleagues is something I would instinctively aim to do, so it’s good I’ve had formal training and a framework to adhere to. I hope to be able to contribute to a healthier and more resilient workplace and culture at SUMS Group.
Izzy Mackenzie
After previously completing the course as a psychology undergraduate in 2020, I couldn’t pass on the opportunity to refresh my knowledge and update and practise my skills. Mental Health should be treated in the same way as physical health and therefore more needs to be done to end the stigma, spread awareness and facilitate these important conversations; as we spend a lot of time at work and amongst colleagues, this seems like a good place to start. I’m hoping that my training will aid me to support my colleagues, and those in my personal life, as I am now better placed to identify, understand and help someone who may be experiencing a mental health issue.
Laura Hunt
With at least 1 in 4 people experiencing mental health issues each year, I believe it’s really important to reduce the stigma and open up the conversation surrounding mental health and wellbeing, particularly in the workplace where mental health issues can go unnoticed and people may find it harder to reach out or open up to their colleagues. I was keen to put myself forward for Mental Health First Aider training so I could be equipped with the knowledge and skills to support someone, both in and outside work, experiencing mental health issues.
Penny Dale
I was interested in undertaking the MHFA course so that I had a better understanding of the different aspects of mental health and wellbeing both in a professional environment and a personal one. It brought home that poor mental health can affect anyone and in many different and varied ways. The course made me stop and think about lots of different aspects of poor mental health that I had not thought of or even been aware of. As a MHFA you have been made aware of the key signs of poor mental health and wellbeing leading us to be a good first port of call to signpost towards help.