Could a Staffordshire town be the blueprint for a national network of Mental Health First Aiders?

“Where Biddulph leads, other towns and cities should follow” – Cllr Dave Proudlove.

A Staffordshire town is leading the way in the training of mental health first aiders.

60 people have risen to a challenge laid down by local councillor and mental health awareness campaigner Adam Parkes.

Now Adam says Biddulph’s work could be a blueprint for the rest of the UK.

Each year around one in four people in the UK will experience a mental health condition. Anyone can be affected, at any point in their lives.

Adam, who was recently elected as Chairman of Staffordshire Moorlands district council has worked to support people facing mental health issues across the Midlands for many years.

His company, Parkes Education works primarily in schools, as Adam is formerly a head teacher, while Community Interest Company, Taking Off The Mask, helps to fight the stigma people with mental health issues can face.

After winning accreditation as a mental health first aid trainer, Adam won the support of Biddulph Town Council to fund training for people in the town.

The town council offered free mental health training, delivered by Adam to empower Biddulph’s residents to tackle mental health problems at a local level and guide those who require it.

The First Aid Awards accredited courses offered two qualifications:

  • Level One for residents seeking to gain an awareness of first aid for mental health; to improve their understanding and recognise a range of mental health conditions, how to start a supportive conversation and when and how to signpost a person to seek professional help.
  • Level Two for those wishing to add to their Mental Health First Aider accreditation with modules to recognise and manage stress and understand the impact of substance abuse, learn about a first aid action plan for mental health, be able to put it in place and how to implement a positive mental health culture in the workplace.

Adam said: “We have a mental health crisis, and it is widely known that NHS services struggle to cope. In addition, people often won’t come forward to ask for help from professionals.

“By rolling out mental health first aid training throughout a town, we can help to take away the barriers of stigma. Some will find it much easier to open up to a volunteer in their own community and that conversation with a mental health first aider can be the first step to gaining support.”

Fellow district and town councillor Dave Proudlove said: “I wholeheartedly support the work Adam has being doing and believe that where Biddulph leads, other towns and cities should follow, There is no reason why mental health first aid training cannot be rolled out across Staffordshire Moorlands and then across the whole of the country.”

Adam founded Parkes Education having come through his own mental health breakdown. Personal issues, a family bereavement, and the pressures of being a school leader led Adam to suffer anxiety and severe depression, culminating in an attempt to take his own life.

He later founded Taking Off The Mask as a Facebook page where he discussed his own breakdown and recovery. He felt the page posts may help someone suffering similar mental trauma but never expected it to grow a world-wide community of more than 10,000 followers.

Among those who have gained a Mental Health First Aid qualification in Biddulph is Shaun Walley.

“I have had issues myself which led me to be hospitalised, so when I heard about the Biddulph scheme, I decided to apply,” said 55-year-old Shaun.

“Many men including me like to think we are tough guys who don’t want to ask for help. But the course helps trainees to recognise the signs that people may be struggling and teaches techniques in how to approach them and what to say.”

“Now I feel confident I can be there for anyone who wants to talk, and I think that, if the programme had been there when I needed it, I may not have ended up in hospital.”

Shaun, who is currently unemployed having been unable to work because of his own mental health issues, says those who have undergone training meet to talk about how they can help people in their local areas.

To find out more about Mental Health First Aid training, please get in touch with Adam at [email protected]

ENDS

For media enquiries please contact Nigel Howle on 0776 2043436, email [email protected]