Online BSA Certificate in Professional Practice – First Aid for Mental Health & Wellbeing

This module is comprised of three tutor-led study days featuring guest speakers, interactive morning and afternoon sessions. Breakout groups allow for discussion and time with the course tutors.

• Study Day 1,  February 28th, 2022
• Study Day 2,  March 14th, 2022
• Study Day 3,  April 27th, 2022

All study days will be held online

Timings for each study day: 10:00am – 16:00pm GMT

Key Elements of the new Certificate Course Programme:

• Understanding the Impact of Trauma and Adverse Life Experiences, Guest Speaker, Dr Hayley Watson Clinical Psychologist PhD Clin Psych, MA Clin Psych, MA Transpersonal Psych, PG Dip Psych, BA Criminology
• Looking after Yourself : Building Personal Resilience and Wellbeing
• First Aid for Mental Health, Jane Graham, MSc, BSc, Dip Ed., R.S.C.N, BSA Nursing Advisor    
• Looking after the Team : Building healthy high performance
• Positive Psychology : Developing an Emotional Literacy Toolkit, Guest Speaker, Dr Jody Walshe, Educational and Child Psychologist
• Managing Resilience and Wellbeing in the Boarding Context

This course can be undertaken by both graduate teaching and non-graduate house staff, including assistant house staff and house-parents, matrons; indeed any member of school staff with responsibility for the care and wellbeing of team members and boarding students.

The programme is organised around a combination of three intensive study days which contain a variety of teaching methods and opportunities to learn in different ways, which include lectures, presentations and discussions led by students, together with group problem solving exercises and case studies. Group discussion is a particularly important aspect of this course, enabling delegates to look at the theory in light of their own practical experience. Students will be encouraged to contribute ideas, opinions and questions, taking responsibility for their own learning, whilst contributing to the learning of the group as a whole. The course is run by senior members of the BSA staff.

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Speaker: Dr Hayley Watson, Clinical Psychologist and Founder of Open Parachute

Dr Hayley Watson is a Clinical Psychologist specializing in children and adolescents with a PhD in school bullying interventions, along with four further academic degrees in the field of mental health. She has been creating and delivering youth and school-based programs globally for the past 15 years, and has worked across a range of sectors including police victim services, non-profit organizations, private psychology practices, hospitals, schools, and universities. She trains educators worldwide on holistic wellbeing practices for staff and students, and is the founder of Open Parachute – a video-based school mental health program using documentary stories of teenagers sharing their experiences of overcoming struggle as a platform for reducing stigma and building resilience in students, that is being delivered in schools across the US, Canada, Australia, and the UK.

Dr Jody Walshe, HCPC Registered Educational and Child Psychologist and Author

Dr Jody Walshe is an Educational and Child Psychologist and a registered member of the Health and Care Professions Council. After completing an English Literature degree at Cambridge University, she achieved a second degree in Psychology whilst teaching and working in SEN provision. She then completed her doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology at the University of East London, which explored self-harm in educational contexts.  Jody is experienced in contributing to the assessment and psychological treatment of developmental difficulties, learning needs and child/adolescent mental health.  She is also a Consultant Psychologist, providing consultations for foster carers and supervising social workers with the Compass Community as part of their REACH approach. She has delivered training to the students on the University of East London Professional Doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology programme.

Jody has extensive direct therapeutic experience with children and young people.  She works with looked after children, young offenders, and children/young people with complex needs.  Jody has training in Video Interaction Guidance, with Level 1 accreditation.  She has a range of experience working with children, adults, families and professionals in both clinical and educational contexts and with local authorities and specialist services.  Jody is experienced in individual and group supervision, in a range of therapeutic contexts.

Jody is an experienced presenter and has delivered to groups including the Centre for Child Mental Health and Nurture UK.  She facilitates training on topics including: techniques to support the emotional development of children and young people; staff resilience and well-being; self-harm; anxiety; attachment in the classroom; bereavement; critical incidents; trauma informed approaches.

Jody has written a number of books and other resources on topics including mindfulness; self-harm; solution focused brief therapy; positive psychology.

Jane Graham, MSc, BSc, Dip Ed., R.S.C.N 

Trained at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children, Jane has 27 years of  nursing background, 17 of which is in trauma and intensive care. Whilst in PICU, she had a number of different roles. Nine years of that included a role as a specialist  retrieval nurse (CATS) that entailed travelling around the country to  stabilize and bring back critically unstable children. To do this she learned   advanced nursing and basic medical skills in resuscitation, all medical conditions, and trauma.

She went on to teach these skills to student nurses, qualified nurses and junior doctors as the Practice educator on intensive care. This role also involved lecturing regularly at South Bank University. She is a DSL for Safeguarding at St Teresa’s School where she currently is the Lead Nurse. On the back of setting up the school’s medical services, she has set up a first aid training company Action + First Aid. She is a freelance instructor for Qualsafe an awarding body approved by the HSE.