Forthcoming training and events 2025 - 2026
If you don't see what you need here...
to discuss the provision of school based training or other support related to the Wiltshire Healthy Schools Programme or PSHE education please feel free to contact us.
Below are central events for Wiltshire schools, taking place in the near future.
Details of free local Making Every Contact Count courses can be found here.
BSW – Senior Mental Health Lead Network Meeting
Wednesday 21st May, 2025. 3:30 - 5pm. Online live.
These network sessions are held three times a year and will focus on supporting the role of the Senior Mental Health Lead in schools and colleges.
These are sessions for those who have previously attended a Senior Mental Health Lead training course (with Wiltshire Council, B&NES, Swindon or another provider). They are useful opportunities for schools to ask questions, share good practice and hear the latest local and national updates. The focus will be on implementing a whole school and college approach to mental health.
The sessions are attended by schools and colleges from B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire.
Further information about these sessions, including notes from previous meetings can be found here.
These additional support sessions are fully subsidised.
Outcomes
By the end of the session delegates will:
- have had an opportunity to listen to and share good practice
- be able to identify challenges and explore solutions
- have received national and local updates relating to school mental health
Governor Training: Promoting Children's Health, And Staff Wellbeing
Thursday 5th June 2025, 6-8pm. Devizes Corn Exchange.
An introductory overview of how schools can strengthen the health and wellbeing of their school community by developing and implementing a whole school approach that includes monitoring and improving staff wellbeing.
We will consider the different aspects of best practice, including:
- Surveying children and young people
- Developing learning in PSHE/RSHE, SMSC and Personal Development curriculums
- Engaging with the Healthy Schools programme
- Making links with current national and local mental health support
We'll include information and activities to explore participants’ understanding and attitudes towards wellbeing and its importance to school settings. This will lead to consideration of the impact of the current educational context on wellbeing and how governor monitoring can address this.
Also included will be a focus on monitoring and improving staff wellbeing, with reference to current guidance for schools. Various practical tools will be shared and discussed that can be used to secure measurable improvements.
The governor’s role in shaping and communicating school/academy policy and practice in these areas will be clarified.
This course is free of charge to schools and academies that subscribe to School Governance. A charge will apply for Governors at non-subscribing schools.
By the end of the course, delegates will:
- be able to monitor and evaluate school/academy policies, practice and resources to support the health and wellbeing of the school community
- have a secure understanding of statutory requirements, good practice and how schools and academies can adopt them for the benefit of all school community members
- be able to ask appropriate challenging questions regarding provision and support for staff wellbeing
PSHE And Healthy Schools Leads Network Meeting
Monday 9th June 2025, 3:45-5pm. Online live.
A network session focussing on improving the health of children from all phases. With a focus on the PSHE curriculum, as well as discussion of related school activities and good practice.
Education to help children stay safe, healthy and prepared for life's opportunities.
Description
These network meetings are held three times a year and will focus on PSHE education and other school-based initiatives to promote health and wellbeing.
These are useful opportunities for schools to ask questions, share good practice and hear the latest local and national updates.
There is usually an external speaker, in addition to the discussions between schools
the end of the session delegates will:
- have had an opportunity to listen to and share good practice
- make connections with other school PSHE and Healthy School leads
- have received and discussed local and national updates, including from Ofsted
Military Schools Network Meeting
Wednesday 11th June 2025, 1:15 - 2:30pm. Online live.
Join mutually supportive schools at a network meeting supporting leaders of military schools/settings.
Schools with pupils who have parents in the military are encouraged to attend these meetings, which are held three times a year.
These meetings are designed to:
- build a network of mutually supportive schools
- share best practice and ideas
- compile an accurate shared resource
- provide a place to share concerns, worries and to ask questions
By the end of the session delegates will:
- have met and shared information to form a network of leaders of schools with service children
- have an up-to-date list of the relevant contacts available to support leaders of schools with service children
- share best practice in a collaborative way
An Introduction to PSHE Education
Monday 16th June 2025. 9:30- 11:30. Online live.
For primary and secondary schools.
As well as providing an overview of the curriculum subject, this session focuses on effective teaching and learning to promote the health and wellbeing of children and young people.
By the end of the session you will have:
- Gained an understanding of PSHE education as a curriculum subject and the current national guidance
- Considered the principles that underpin effective PSHE education
Youth Mental Health First Aid
Monday 23rd June 2025 & Tuesday 24th June 2025, 9:00am-5:00pm at Devizes Corn Exchange.
The Youth Mental Health First Aid course has been updated (2025) with the latest knowledge and research. It has been redeveloped through an inclusive lens with extensive input from young people with lived experience.
This course is ideal for anyone who lives with, works with, or supports young people aged 8 to 18 and wants to gain the knowledge, awareness, and skills to spot the signs of a young person experiencing poor mental health, the confidence to start a conversation, and the tools to safeguard and signpost to appropriate support.
Train as a Youth Mental Health First Aider and you will receive three years of certification, plus access to ongoing benefits by joining the Association of Mental Health First Aiders®.
We value this course at £325 per person, although, Wiltshire Council offer this training at a reduced rate of £100 to those work with young people in Wiltshire.
Course structure
Key areas covered within this course include:
- What is mental health?
- Your role as a Youth MHFAider
- What influences mental health?
- The adolescent brain
- What is anxiety?
- What is depression?
- What is self-harm?
- Suicide thoughts and behaviour
- What is self-care?
- Addictive behaviours and substance use
- What is psychosis?
- What is disordered eating?
- Applying the Youth MHFA action plan
- Recovery
- Youth MHFA conversation practice
Everyone who completes the course receives:
- A copy of the workbook to support their learning throughout the course
- A digital manual to refer to whenever they need it
- A wallet-sized reference card with the Youth MHFA action plan (ALGEE)
- A digital Youth MHFAider certificate valid for three years
Following the course, you will be invited to join the Association of Mental Health First Aiders - England’s first and only membership body for MHFAiders, and the largest community of its kind.
Become Youth Mental Health Aware
Thursday 26th June 2025, 9am-12pm. Online live.
Become Youth Mental Health Aware
This course is suitable for any member of school staff who work with Wiltshire young people aged 8-18
This introductory three-hour session raises awareness of young people’s mental health. It covers:
- Some of the common mental health issues affecting young people, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders and psychosis
- Skills to work more effectively with young people living with mental health issues
- Ways to support young people with a mental health issue and relate to their experiences
Everyone who completes the session gets:
- A certificate to say you are Youth Mental Health Aware
- A manual to keep and refer to whenever you need it
£70 per person
More about Youth Mental Health First Aid
PSHE And Healthy Schools Leads Network Meeting
Tuesday 16th September 2025, 15:45-17:00. Online live.
A network session focussing on improving the health of children from all phases. With a focus on the PSHE curriculum, as well as discussion of related school activities and good practice.
Education to help children stay safe, healthy and prepared for life's opportunities.
Description
These network meetings are held three times a year and will focus on PSHE education and other school-based initiatives to promote health and wellbeing.
These are useful opportunities for schools to ask questions, share good practice and hear the latest local and national updates.
There is usually an external speaker, in addition to the discussions between schools
the end of the session delegates will:
- have had an opportunity to listen to and share good practice
- make connections with other school PSHE and Healthy School leads
- have received and discussed local and national updates, including from Ofsted
Military Schools Network Meeting
Wednesday 17th September 2025, 15:30 - 16:45. Online live.
Join mutually supportive schools at a network meeting supporting leaders of military schools/settings.
Schools with pupils who have parents in the military are encouraged to attend these meetings, which are held three times a year.
These meetings are designed to:
- build a network of mutually supportive schools
- share best practice and ideas
- compile an accurate shared resource
- provide a place to share concerns, worries and to ask questions
By the end of the session delegates will:
- have met and shared information to form a network of leaders of schools with service children
- have an up-to-date list of the relevant contacts available to support leaders of schools with service children
- share best practice in a collaborative way
Book soon on Right Choice
BSW – Senior Mental Health Lead Network Meeting
Monday 29th September, 2025. 15:30 - 17:00. Online live.
These network sessions are held three times a year and will focus on supporting the role of the Senior Mental Health Lead in schools and colleges.
These are sessions for those who have previously attended a Senior Mental Health Lead training course (with Wiltshire Council, B&NES, Swindon or another provider). They are useful opportunities for schools to ask questions, share good practice and hear the latest local and national updates. The focus will be on implementing a whole school and college approach to mental health.
The sessions are attended by schools and colleges from B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire.
Further information about these sessions, including notes from previous meetings can be found here.
These additional support sessions are fully subsidised.
Outcomes
By the end of the session delegates will:
- have had an opportunity to listen to and share good practice
- be able to identify challenges and explore solutions
- have received national and local updates relating to school mental health
Wiltshire Healthy Schools Programme Briefing
Monday 6th October 2025 9:30-11:00. Online live.
This optional free briefing can be attended by school staff who would like to find out how to complete the online audit or refresh their knowledge of the accreditation process.
Schools can now join the Wilshire Healthy Schools programme, or prepare for their next application for accreditation, by buying the package @ £155 from the Store here: https://rightchoice.wiltshire.gov.uk/Services/4099
This event will:
- clarify the process to gain Wiltshire Healthy Schools accreditation
- inform participants about the current standards for the Programme at Bronze, Silver & Gold levels
- demonstrate how to complete the online audit
For further information see http://www.wiltshirehealthyschools.org/about
Subject Leadership in Primary PSHE Education
Thursday 16th October 2025, 10:00-12:00. Online live.
Exploring the role of the primary PSHE subject leader.
Topics covered on this course include:
- PSHE the national picture
- The role of the PSHE Coordinator
- Teaching & Learning in PSHE
- School self-review
- Schemes of work
- Recording & Reporting
- Working with Governors
- Working with parents
- Working with partners
- Developing pupil voice
- Links to Wiltshire Healthy Schools
- Action planning
By the end of the session delegates will:
- be aware of the key tasks of a primary school PSHE subject lead
- have explored tools to monitor, plan and develop PSHE education
- have increased confidence in undertaking their role
Youth Mental Health First Aid
Thursday 20th & Friday 21st October 2025, 9:00-17:00 at TBC
Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) training is an internationally recognised programme designed to promote awareness of psychological and emotional wellbeing and mental health and to support professionals to recognise and respond to mental health issues in 8-18 year olds.
Wiltshire Council is able to offer this training at a reduced rate, compared to most other national providers, with further discounts for those that work with Wiltshire young people.
Key areas covered within this course include:
- Emotional, mental, social and psychological wellbeing
- Eating disorders, Self Harm, Suicide
- Child and adolescent development
- Depression, Anxiety, Psychosis
- Promoting protective factors and sources of support
This two day Youth MHFA course will teach you how to:
- recognise the early signs of a mental health problem in young people
- feel confident helping a young person experiencing a mental health problem
- guide a young person towards the right support
Everyone who completes the course receives:
- A certificate of attendance to say you are a Youth MHFAider®
- A Youth MHFAider® manual to refer to whenever you need it
- A workbook including some helpful tools to support your own mental health
Cost for Wiltshire schools £100
Cost to schools beyond Wiltshire: £200
Senior Mental Health Lead Training
Monday 17th November 2025, 9:00-17:00. Online live.
A course suitable for mental health leads with responsibility for coordinating the school's approach to mental health, and with an interest in improving the mental health and wellbeing of learners and staff.
The content of this course aligns with national guidance "Promoting children and young people’s emotional health and wellbeing. A whole school and college approach" developed by Public Health England and the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Coalition.
Attending this course will help you complete local healthy school and mental health audits.
The course will assist you in meeting the requirements of the RSHE Statutory curriculum and relevant sections of Ofsted’s Inspection Framework.
Outcomes
By the end of the session delegates will have:
- understood the role of the School Mental Health Lead and how to implement national guidance in the school setting
- gained confidence to embed a whole school approach to mental health within your school
- be familiar with practical tools to audit provision, plan improvements, asses the needs of young people and support staff wellbeing
Please note: Although this course covers similar areas and will support staff in the role of Senior Mental Health Lead, it is not a DfE assured course and will not enable schools to claim a national grant. The delivery of the DfE assured SMHL course has now ended in Wiltshire, as has the provision of a national grant.
Making Provision for Staff Wellbeing - the Role of Governors and Trustees
Wednesday 26th November 2025. 9:30-11:00. Online live.
The session aims to help governors and trustees to understand their role in monitoring and supporting provision for staff wellbeing.
The session will
- include information and activities to explore participants’ understanding and attitudes towards wellbeing in places of work and learning
- consider the impact of the current educational context on wellbeing
- introduce national initiatives such as the Wellbeing Charter and tools for ensuring staff mental health can be prioritised
- consider governors’ responsibilities for supporting school emotional health and wellbeing
Outcomes
By the end of the session delegates will:
- understand the impact of the current educational context on staff wellbeing
- know how to access key documents and recommended guidance needed to shape school policies and practices
- be able to ask appropriate challenging questions regarding provision and support for school staff wellbeing
Book soon on Right Choice
