MHFA England Instructor Member awarded MBE in New Year's Honours

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England Instructor Member Gordon Knight has been awarded an MBE for 'public service and to mental health awareness' in the New Year's Honours List.

He has been a civil servant for over 20 years and has delivered MHFA England training course to over 300 colleagues, as well as personally supporting colleagues over 100 times. 

On the news, Gordon commented:

"I am thrilled to be awarded an MBE for my services to mental health awareness. Since I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety 12 years ago, my passion has been to get the message across that asking for help is a sign of strength. Being open about my own mental health has helped my colleagues be more open too.  

"As part of my work I have been fortunate to have delivered MHFA England training to over 300 colleagues so far. I am proud to be an MHFA England Instructor Member and proud to be part of the movement towards achieving parity of esteem between mental health and physical first aid."

Although he was not diagnosed until in his thirties, Gordon has experienced anxiety and depression since he was a teenager.

In 2007 he began talking about his experiences and mental health issues at work. Focusing on raising awareness of mental health issues, stress, and building resilience, Gordon began to run talks and workshops alongside his day job. In 2011 he became a Samaritan, starting as a listening volunteer in his local branch and going on to train over 100 volunteers. He also ran two half marathons to raise funds.

In 2016 he trained to become an MHFA England Instructor Member while working for Border Force. Since 2017 he has established, and continues to manage, an MHFA Network in the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS). He continues to provide mental health awareness talks to colleagues ranging from short talks at Townhall meetings to two hour sessions at team away days.

For more on Gordon's MHFA work you can read his piece for the Government Science and Engineering blog.

You can also find more information on becoming an MHFA England Instructor Member.