Teachers and School-Based Staff programme

Our Mental Health Champions - Foundation Programme is open to anyone working in a UK school. If you:

• have a permanent role in a school
• have qualified teacher status (QTS)
• are an Early Career Teacher (ECT), Probationer or Newly Qualified Teacher (NQT),

you're eligible for this programme. This includes:

• teaching assistants and learning support assistants
• supply teachers
  • please use your agency address in the school address field when you apply
• QTs or ECTs not currently working in a school
  • please use the address of the school you worked in most recently in the school address field when you apply
• Early Years Practitioners (EYPs) or Teachers of Infant and nursery-aged children*
• Teachers with a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) for Further Education*
• School Nurses
• School Governors
• School Administrators

*Please be aware we have designed the programme for practitioners teaching Key Stage 1–4 in England and Wales and P2–S4 in Scotland. The course may still be valuable for practitioners teaching early years or those working in further education.

You're unfortunately not eligible if you or your school are not in the UK.

Trainee Teachers Programme

If you're:

• currently training to become a teacher in England
• are on an early years course with a placement in a school

then you are eligible to sign-up for this version of the programme.

If you are a student teacher in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, please contact us at mhc@place2be.org.uk to see what we can offer you.

Youth Groups Programme

If you're a youth worker or trusted adult who works with young people to support their personal, social or educational development through care, informal education or leisure approaches in the UK, then you are eligible to sign up for this version of the programme.

If you have any queries regarding your eligibility, please contact us at mhc@place2be.org.uk.

Absolutely. We can run private groups for a fee. For more information, please get in touch with us at mhc@place2be.org.uk.

There are multiple start dates to choose from, and the course is entirely online. You can access it whenever it is suitable for you, up to 10 weeks from the start date. A new module is released every week for five weeks. Each module requires around 1–1.5 hours of work, depending on pre-existing knowledge, ease of technology use, or personal interest.

As many as you want to!

We recommend that all staff be encouraged to register themselves. This leads to greater engagement with the programme instead of a bulk upload.

You can access your course at any time convenient to you up to 10 weeks from the start date, so changing your start date may not be necessary.

Unfortunately, we cannot change the date of your course on your behalf. If you do want to make a change, you will have to register again on our website for an available course. Once you have done this, please let us know by emailing mhc@place2be.org.uk.

Yes. If you complete all modules, you can claim your certificate.

The Mental Health Champions – Foundation programme differs from a mental health first aid course. Even if you have done some training in Mental Health awareness, this course is a good refresher. It may contain new information or present information in a new way.

If you've received your invitation to join the course on your start date but are having issues registering to the learning platform, please contact our partners at Hive Learning by emailing help@hivelearning.com.

If you're having issues signing up for the programme, please email us at mhc@place2be.org.uk.

You'll receive details of how to access the course by the end of the day on the course's start date.