An NHS organisation is launching online and face-to-face courses to help people in Salford with their mental health.
Recovery Academy is encouraging people to go along if they struggle with their well-being, as a chance to help understand their own experiences and meet others.
A range of topics is covered from trauma and sleep worry management to personality disorder and addiction.
Team manager Lucy Burthem said: “They could get lots of tips and techniques to help them in their day to day.
“It can be a real network builder as well, whether that be for your recovery and support or whether it’s just that one day. It’s nice to know you’re not alone.”
The free courses are described as having a relaxed nature and you do not have to be part of NHS mental health services to join.
The way that courses are delivered are a mixture of professional and personal experience.
Lucy said: “Say if we have a course that was looking around anxiety, it would be developed by someone who worked with people and had expertise in that area but with equal weighting, it would be developed and delivered with somebody who has lived experience of what it’s really like to try and manage anxiety day to day.”
Even if you do not suffer with mental health problems yourself, the academy encourages anyone over the age of 18 to attend. Whether that be to support someone else with their mental health, or simply to learn something new.
Lucy said: “If someone is a carer, they can learn about the experiences that people they are caring for are having, but also get their own support as a carer, and the trust really recognises the impact that a caring role can have.
“If someone is living in Salford and working in healthcare or mental health and they’re wanting to get some training, then the Recovery Academy has a really good resource for that as well.”
There are also e-learning packages that users can work through at their own pace including online courses, self-help worksheets, podcasts, e-magazines and self-help videos.
Lucy explained: “The radio podcasts are people either having discussions around their own lived experience or around different research elements, and also a specific one around dementia research.”
The Recovery Academy also offers what is called a ‘study buddy’ for those wanting to attend the courses but may be a bit nervous about going alone. The study buddy would have experience of coming to the Recovery Academy and can be arranged by contacting the academy prior to sessions.
“They would meet them before the course and stay with them in the course, just to help them feel a bit more confident and comfortable with it.”
The programme first launched with 11 courses in 2013. Now with 63 courses, it covers many aspects of mental health from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy skills to holistic therapies and even spirituality.
A student who recently attended the Introduction to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Informed Practice course said: “One of the best training days I have done, I can and will definitely use my newfound skills and knowledge.”
The academy is free to join and when you register via the website you automatically become a ‘student’.
Lucy said: “We really recognise that mental health doesn’t discriminate. We want to support the communities whether that be a workplace, whether that be a person. We want to talk about mental health everywhere.
“Work is such a huge part of our lives, and it can be challenging at times. We can’t ignore mental health in workplaces, and we shouldn’t. I think that’s a real driver for our buddy course to get the support into workplaces and raise awareness around that.”
The courses will start in mid-November until March next year, with face-to-face sessions being held at Brunswick House, on Broad Street, and can be booked onto via the website now.
They also offer bespoke training courses for organisations in Salford and courses for peer support in the workplace, with more information about this on their website.
To explore what the Recovery Academy has to offer, you can visit their website.
They can also be contacted directly with any questions at recoveryacademy@gmmh.nhs.uk or telephone 0161 358 1771.
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