Thrive Bristol is offering a range of free mental health courses, delivered online, to people who work or volunteer in the city's Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector. The courses focus on general wellbeing, principles of mental health, resilience, suicide awareness, bereavement and much more. 

COVID-19 has affected everyone's wellbeing, whether they had always enjoyed good mental health or not. In July 2020, a report from the Centre for Mental Health estimated that half a million more people will experience a mental health difficulty because of the pandemic. You have probably noticed the impact on your service users, colleagues, family and friends, and these courses can help you deal with the issues at hand. 

Learning options from Thrive Bristol are:

• Adult Mental Health Aware - a four-hour session, delivered by Bristol Mind, which outlines mental health in adults and common mental health conditions. There is also advice on how to support someone in distress.
  The next available course is on Thursday 22 October. 
• Connect 5 - a three-module, skills-based programme using evidence-based tools such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and the Five Ways to Wellbeing. This course can be taken as individual units or as two or three parts. Each part lasts three hours.
  Module 1 of the next available course starts on Thursday 24 September. 
• Suicide Awareness - a one-hour workshop teaching you to recognise and ask about suicidal thoughts, indentify when someone is feeling suicidal, take action, and look after your own wellbeing.
  The next available workshop is on Tuesday 29 September.
• Loss and Bereavement - a one-hour session from Cruse Bereavement Care, on the grieving process, how to support someone who is grieving, and which support services are available.
  The next available course is on Thursday 15 October. 

Priority will be given to organisations that support communities with mental health or wellbeing inequalities. 

Please book your place on your chosen course/s via Eventbrite. Whilst courses are available free to the local VCSE sector, there is a cancellation charge of £50 if you do not cancel an unwanted place within 24 hours of the course. 

All the courses are available on an open programme, but you can contact Thrive Bristol if you'd prefer a closed course delivered just for your organisation - email thrive.bristol@bristol.gov.uk for information. 

If you are unable to make any of the available dates for your chosen course, Thrive recommends the following:

• COVID-19: Psychological First Aid - a three-part course to help people cope with the emotional challenges of COVID-19. This course is run by FutureLearn, and was produced by Public Health England. 
• Suicide Awareness - a 20-minute course on suicide awareness, with BSL available for hearing-impaired learners. This course is run by Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.