I am passionate about improving the mental health of others. I have living experience of mental ill health and over the years have learned how to better manage my anxiety and depression. With my ups and downs I know that there are lots of go-to things that help me. Plenty of gardening time when I can, and time in the woods with my dog really helps. Taking time to be still with my breath, ground and connect to the earth is also crucial for me. A piece of cake every now and again also lifts the soul! And spending time with my circle of friends who make me feel good about me helps too. Spadgie, Kristy, Liz, Mel, Cath, Jayne, Rachel, Luke and Scott, thank you for standing around me when I need your support and friendship, laughter and love.
I trained with Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England in 2018 and I have trained over 500 Mental Health First Aiders (MHFAider®) so far. I truly believe that this course saves lives. Being able to have the most important conversation you can ever have with someone is possible with the learning on the course. I support the charity Andy’s Man Club and I spread the word wherever I go that it is #OKAYTOTALK. You can find out more about Andy’s Man Club here Andy’s Man Club | #ITSOKAYTOTALK (Opens in new tab)
If you need help with your own mental health don’t be afraid to reach out – Text SHOUT TO 85258 How Shout 85258 works (opens in new tab)
OR Give the Samaritans a call 116 123 or click here for NHS support Mental Health Helpline for Urgent Help – NHS (www.nhs.uk – opens in new tab)
Are You OKAY? Mental Health Awareness Training, 14th March 2025, £150+VAT per place. Delivered by Sarah Henry Safeguarding. Maximum of 15 people per cohort resulting in a bespoke and supportive training experience for learners. Fully inclusive of all training materials (and lunch and cake!). Further information can be found here. To register interest please email sarah@sarahhenry.co.uk.
I had a fantastic day on Friday at The Nostell Estate with Sarah Henry, taking part in the, ‘Are you Okay? Mental Health Awareness Course.’
How many times do you respond to that question by saying, ‘yeah I’m fine.’ or ‘yeah, not bad’? There’s so many different ways in which we can approach conversations with both young people and adults when we suspect things aren’t in fact ‘fine’.
I highly recommend Sarah to anyone who is passionate around safeguarding and upskilling their staff on mental health. 2024 participant
This course provides an in-depth understanding to participants of young people’s mental health and teaches practical skills to spot the triggers and signs of mental health illness. It enables participants to feel more confident when reassuring and supporting a young person in distress or crisis.
What is Mental Health First Aid?
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an internationally recognised training course, designed to teach people how to spot the signs and symptoms of mental ill health and provide help on a first aid basis. Youth MHFAiders® have:
- An in depth understanding of young people’s mental health and factors that affect wellbeing
- Practical skills to spot the triggers and signs of mental health issues
- Confidence to reassure and support a young person in distress
- Enhanced interpersonal skills such as non-judgemental listening
- Knowledge to help a young person recover their health by guiding them to further support – whether that’s through self-help sites, their place of learning, the NHS, or a mix – engaging with parents, carers and external agencies where appropriate
- Ability to support a young person with a long term mental health issue or disability to thrive
- Tools to look after your own mental wellbeing
The course is delivered in four manageable chunks over two days: About Mental Health, Depression and Anxiety, Suicide and Psychosis, Self-harm and Eating Disorders. MHFA England™ © 2018 MHFA. All rights reserved.
It focuses on the issues faced by young people today, such as cyber bullying and substance misuse, and teaches how to promote protective factors and good parenting. Everyone who completes the course gets a Youth MHFA manual to refer to whenever they need it, and a certificate to say they are a Youth Mental Health First Aider.
Next Dates:
tbc.
Places are currently £300+VATpp. Lunch and refreshments included. Free parking.
Includes all the resources to take away; MHFA England Manual and Toolkit and MHFA England Certification. Certificate lasts 3 years.
Courses are delivered in the beautiful grounds at Nostell Priory. 9.00am – 5.00pm both days.
Participants must be over 18 years old.
Please email to book or visit Sarah’s MHFA England page here (opens new tab). Details of our next course dates can be found on our What’s On page.
MHFA England Course Feedback
Excellent course, Sarah was brilliant and understanding to all the learners needs and experiences. Would highly recommend!! I really enjoyed both training days, Sarah really made me feel at ease. She is very knowledgeable about all aspects of the mental health course. I feel confident that I will be able to apply my newly learnt skills. I will definitely be looking out for more courses with MHFA England. Sarah is an exceptional instructor and a fount of all knowledge and expertise. This course surpassed my expectations and will be vital in my role as a Primary School Headteacher. The quality of delivery, discussion and content was superb and I will recommend this course to colleagues. Many thanks, Sarah - you were amazing!
Thank you to Sarah for the amazing delivery of this course, she made me feel at ease from the moment I walked through the door. There is some very difficult content in this course and the way it was delivered was exceptional. I feel I have a much better understanding of mental health and feel confident to support other with mental health issues.Thank you so much Sarah Henry, you are a wonderful human being.
This course is one of the most valuable pieces of training I have received. Sarah's knowledge is so strong and the way in which she explains course content is so clear. She provides valuable time for colleagues to talk, share ideas and ask questions. Her caring and supportive approach gives colleagues confidence and truly makes them feel valued.
This course will stay with me for a long time. Not only do I feel equipped to take on my role at school, but the course leader ensured we all felt equipped for life. It was like therapy and I felt emotional and relaxed at the end. Sarah Henry is amazing and please pass on my praise. love and gratitude xx
2023 Participant.
This was the best training course I've ever attended. The subject content was very challenging at times, yet Sarah created a space where we felt safe and supported to engage fully with it and share knowledge and experiences. Our wellbeing was at the forefront of her delivery at all times. There were so many helpful links and ideas shared which was very valuable. The pace of delivery was spot on and Sarah noticed when there was a need to adjust the timings of sessions, e.g. when we needed an earlier break than proposed following a particularly sensitive session. I learnt and incredible amount over the course of the two ways, whilst feeling like I was in the middle of a group hug the whole time. Sarah is a fantastic trainer with a genuine knack for supporting her attendees.
2023 Participant.
Sarah was absolutely amazing with the pace of the course and with supporting the whole group throughout the entier two days. She constantly checked in with everybody and was always open to let people share their worries. Her knowledge on the subject matter was outstanding. She was so positive towards everyone and welcoming. The venue which the course takes place on is so unique and comfortable. She implemented so many little, subtle ways to make sure people were comforted and reassured. SHe answered every question in detail. I had an amazing two days which, taking into consideration the course material, is a testament to Sarah.
2023 Participant
I feel the course has helped me to look at mental health in a totally different light. It has given me the knowledge and guidance to approach it in a much better way and although I felt I was doing things well before the course, it as made me realise there is definitely a lot of room for improvement in my practice. I would recommend this course to anyone working with young people, it's essential more people get this training. Thank you Sarah, I've done training with you before and they are always the ones that stick with me because you have a certain way of delivering it, you're a natural for this kind of work and I'm so grateful I had the opportunity to have these 2 days learning from you.
Excellent course. Couldn't have asked for a better course instructor. Thoughtful, knowledgeable, inspiring and enthusiastic. Inspiring lady.
The delivery of the course was amazing. Sarah made a
really intense training subject enjoyable. I have learnt loads.
Thank you.
Within 13 years of employment at the college this is the
most relevant and interesting and transferable course I
have completed. Thank you.
A thoroughly enjoyable course, I have gained so much.
Sarah Henry was so engaging and made two days go very
quickly.
Sarah is an amazing instructor; passionate and clearly
knowledgeable. She enabled all members of the group to get
maximum benefit from the course.
Sarah made this course enjoyable despite the topic. She
ensured the safety and wellbeing within the room and I
personally felt extremely supported.
I found the course very informative and the delivery was
first class. I would highly recommend.
I was very privileged to have this course conducted and delivered by this wonderful lady. Her ability to engage, motivate and move me with her knowledge and in places her own experiences was exceptional. I have been to many courses but Sarah's passion about what she does is inspirational.
I have nothing but admiration and respect for her. I too am very passionate about the children in school and I aspire to the great lady Rita Pearson - "Every child needs a champion". I can now aspire to two woman to help me make a difference in my job role as learning mentor. One of these woman being Sarah.
I look forward to meeting her again during training and would advise anyone to attend the course of MHFA and not be moved and liberated by how she conducts and delivers with passion, empathy and care. She ensured our wellbeing was positive throughout and welcomed any questions, concerns or issues to be addressed with her if necessary.
If you or someone you know is in need of urgent help, the following link will take you to the NHS Mental Health Urgent Helplines service.
Mental Health Helpline for Urgent Help – NHS (www.nhs.uk Opens in new tab)
Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.