We have hit a major milestone at MHFA England. We have now trained one million learners in mental health knowledge, awareness, and skills. We couldn’t be prouder! Our vision is to improve the mental health of the nation. We will achieve this through our mission to train 1 in 10 people in mental health knowledge, awareness, and skills. To date, we have trained 1 in 38.
We could not have achieved this, without the dedication and support of our Instructor Member community, who work tirelessly to deliver our training. To celebrate this achievement, and the incredible work of the community, we spoke to Jim Evans, the Instructor Member who delivered MHFA training to our one millionth learner.
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Tell us about your journey to become an Instructor Member?
I spent most of my adult life serving in the British Army, with a variety of roles and responsibilities during that career. Like most serving soldiers, I was exposed to several difficult and sometimes distressing situations. What helped me through those challenging times was the support of my colleagues and senior leadership.
When I become a senior leader myself, I was acutely aware of the vital role that I had to play in the mental health and welfare of the men and women under my command. I was encouraged by a former mentor and friend of mine, Richard Dorney, to get involved in training a team to improve mental health provision in the Armed Forces. We delivered Trauma Risk Incident Training and the military equivalent of MHFA. That was my last role in the military and on leaving the service, in 2016, I started to work with MHFA England to deliver training to workplaces.
Very sadly Richard passed away in 2022 but I like to think that he would have been proud of the training that I continue to deliver. The passion for the work I do, is a direct result of Richard’s influence and his advocacy for improving mental health provision in the Armed Forces community and beyond.
What do you love about being an Instructor Member?
Being involved with MHFA England has given me the opportunity to meet so many different people from different backgrounds. I know people often say it, but really, no two days are the same. I deliver training not only on behalf of MHFA England but also for an organisation called Strong Mind Resiliency Training, so I work with a huge range of organisations and companies both in the private and public sector.
I recently delivered several courses to a group of prison inmates. It was fascinating to hear their life experiences and the difficulties they had faced. A week later I was in the City of London, delivering training to a group of learners that worked for a very large international insurance company. There are not many training jobs where you get that sort of variety and the chance maybe to change someone’s life for the better.
How has being part of the MHFA England community impacted you?
My time with MHFA England has allowed me to gain experience and confidence in delivering training and encouraged me to expand and grow and take on new challenges.
In 2017, I trained to become an MHFA Youth instructor, a course I believe is vital to raise awareness of mental health to teachers and staff who support young people. In 2022, I become a Suicide First Aider Instructor as I passionately believe we must, as a society, reduce the number of people who sadly die this way.
As well as these more formal roles, I have been approached by several charities over the years to do volunteer work for them. It gives me great personal satisfaction to share my expertise with organisations that do such vital work in supporting their communities. This is the embodiment of what being part of the MHFA England community means. We know that our training and the support it offers can make a lasting difference. To workplaces. To individuals. And to society.
How do you feel about delivering training to the one millionth learner?
It feels wonderful to be a part of MHFA England’s history. I was absolutely delighted to be asked to contribute to the celebrations. I remember the cohort well – a group of Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) employees who had volunteered to become MHFAiders.
It’s rare that I ever come away from a training session without learning something from the group and this one was no different. Supportive, non-judgemental conversations were had, and I walked away a little taller, knowing another group of people would be able to support their colleagues, friends and family, if the need ever arose.
Whether it’s the one millionth learner, or the 999,000th learner, I am proud to deliver MHFA England training to all. Everyone should be able to talk freely about mental health and get support when they need it. I truly believe that together – learners, MHFAiders, Instructor Members, workplaces and beyond - we’ll create a society where everyone’s mental health matters.
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