In this Mental Health First-Aiders CPD Guide
Why do Mental Health First-Aiders need CPD?

A mental health first-aider is a person who is trained to provide initial support and assistance to someone experiencing a mental health crisis or struggling with their mental health. They can offer guidance on how to access appropriate resources and help the individual feel heard and supported. Mental health first-aiders are not mental health professionals, but they are equipped with the skills and knowledge to handle mental health situations and provide early intervention until professional help is available.
A mental health first-aider may have several duties, including recognising the signs and symptoms of mental health issues, providing initial support and assistance to individuals experiencing mental distress, and referring them to appropriate resources or professionals. They may also promote mental health awareness, reduce stigma, and create a supportive environment in their community or workplace. Additionally, they may provide information and education on mental health topics, and advocate for better mental health policies and practices.
Rather than work solely in a healthcare setting, there can be one member of any work team who is trained to be a mental health first-aider on top of their usual job. Or a person can solely be a mental health first-aider as their main job. A mental health first-aider may work in a variety of settings such as workplaces, schools, universities, hospitals, community centres, offices and other public spaces.
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What CPD courses do Mental Health First-Aiders need?
We offer a range of courses that are well suited to a mental health first-aider.
Some of these include:
Self-Harming Awareness – self-harming is an issue that impacts many people, and by strengthening our understanding of why people do this, we can help them overcome it. By gaining a stronger awareness, we can really start to help those who suffer, and we may even begin to think differently about how we approach this.
Anxiety Awareness – this course is perfect for anyone working with people who have anxiety issues. The course develops a strong understanding of triggers for anxiety and panic attacks, as well as approaches to overcoming anxiety.
Bipolar Disorder Awareness – this course is designed to give a wide knowledge of bipolar disorder to ensure that students can effectively assist people in managing their episodes. Through the five units you will be introduced to the effects of bipolar disorder and how to deal with these.
Borderline Personality Disorder – in this course, you will gain a greater insight into what the disorder is, the signs and symptoms, the four types of psychotherapy available and how you can support someone with borderline personality disorder.
Children’s Mental Health – it is important for people who work with children to know how they can support children who have mental health difficulties. This Children’s Mental Health course will give you an insight into the different types of mental health difficulties common in children and how to help young people through these.
Dementia Awareness – helping a person with dementia to maintain quality of life is extremely important. This Dementia Awareness course will help carers, family members and those living with dementia understand how to diagnose, treat and live with dementia to ensure quality of life is always central in a care plan.
Depression Awareness – depression is one of the most common mental illnesses, and with this course on depression awareness you will gain a much wider understanding of what it is and the feelings experienced by a depressed individual.
Mental Health Awareness – this course is great for anyone. It teaches the basics of mental health and why it is important to maintain a positive mental attitude. Through the course students will develop their knowledge of the issues which people with mental health problems face.
Mental Health First-Aider – this course will give you an insight into the roles and responsibilities of a mental health first-aider and you will learn about the different types of mental health conditions and how to support someone with a mental health condition.
Download our CPD trackerA guide to CPD for Mental Health First-Aiders
To become a mental health first-aider, some of the key qualities required include empathy, good communication skills, the ability to listen actively, a non-judgemental attitude, and the willingness to learn and stay up to date with mental health issues. It is also important to have a good understanding of mental health and the factors that can contribute to mental health problems, as well as the ability to recognise and respond to signs of distress in others. Additionally, being able to maintain confidentiality and boundaries is crucial in this role.
Mental health first-aiders are regulated by Mental Health First Aid England (MHFA England). Continuous Professional Development can help a mental health first-aider to stay on top of their knowledge to offer best practice in the role. This is important to provide effective support to individuals experiencing mental health issues and to ensure that the mental health first-aider is equipped to handle a range of situations. Additionally, CPD can help to enhance the mental health first-aider’s confidence and competence in their role.
CPD certificates
As with all our courses, you will receive a CPD certificate when you complete your chosen online course. To complete the course you need to work through all of the course content, and then pass the end of course quiz. Upon successfully completing this you will immediately be awarded with a CPD certificate. This will be available for you to download, or we can post a copy to your address. We advise you to keep your CPD certificates safe for future use.
Logging CPD hours
The time you spend on your CPD course can be logged to form part of your CPD hours. This log will act as a running total of the number of hours you spend on CPD training. This is important to keep up to date as some regulators require workers to complete a set number of CPD training hours each year. As well as the time that you spend on your courses, you can also include time spent working on other CPD training activities.
Some of these could be:
- Working with a mentor.
- Attending a conference.
- Watching a tutorial.
- Listening to a podcast.
- Completing online reading.
- Job shadowing other colleagues.
- Completing role plays.
Keeping evidence
No matter what CPD training you decide to do, you should keep evidence of participating in that activity. This is so that at the end of each year, you have a record of what CPD training you have completed, which you may need to show to a regulator or your employer. You can keep evidence of your CPD electronically or as hard copies, and create a CPD portfolio which you can use as a folder of CPD evidence.
Renewing CPD certificates
It is important to stay on top of your CPD so that you are always working to the latest legislation and guidance to best support people. Once you have completed a CPD course, you should renew your learning of the topic area every two years. At CPD Online College we update our courses as each industry has updates, so that all of our students are always working to accurate information. To renew your CPD certificate with us you can simply complete a refresher of your chosen course.
