13 June 2022

Since March 2022, the Community Partnerships and Engagement team in CNWL’s adult mental health division have been working alongside partnering organisations to deliver free training sessions across areas of North West London. These sessions are designed to help people support one another in areas of mental health and wellbeing, and they can all be booked today!

The three training offers are:

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Training delivered by CNWL Wellbeing Advisors – A comprehensive two-day (or four half-day) training course teaching you how to identify, understand and help someone experiencing a mental health issue. Like first aid for physical health, MHFA gives you the tools to assess and respond to a person in crisis whilst also looking after your own mental wellbeing. Available to people who live, work or care in the following boroughs: Harrow; Brent; Kensington & Chelsea; Westminster – Register here

Ambassador of Hope (AoH) Training delivered by Chasing the Stigma – Written from a lived experience point-of-view, this training aims to normalise and humanise conversations around mental health. This one-hour session is not intended to make someone an expert in mental health, but instead offers essential information and a toolkit to improve confidence in the topic. Available to people who live, work or care in the following boroughs: Harrow; Brent; Kensington & Chelsea; Westminster and Hillingdon – Register here

Please note: After a short hiatus, Ambassadors of Hope training is scheduled to restart in Autumn 2023.

Both offers are free and available to CNWL staff, patients, carers, non-CNWL staff, community leaders, volunteers and representatives from third sector and grassroots organisations.

As of Autumn 2023, over 1000 people have been trained across both programmes (640 for MHFA and 541 for Ambassadors of Hope). The feedback has been extremely positive: 

  • “Attending this course has been the best thing I have done for myself this year[...] I have no doubt that these skills will be valuable in supporting myself, family, friends and my clients in future.”
  • "Excellent course and course materials; good delivery and interactivity overall. All participants encouraged to engaged."
  • "The tutor’s exceptional time management and group facilitation skills made this intense course enjoyable. She generously shared her knowledge and experiences, fostering a strong sense of synergy within the group. She skilfully highlighted the strengths each participant brought to the table, ensuring everyone felt included and valued. Her mindfulness and kindness made it easier for us to tackle the challenging aspects of mental health issues."

If you have any further questions or if you’d like to book for a group larger than FOUR, please email: cnwl.communityengagement@nhs.net.