Facilitating Self Help Groups

People often find it helpful to come together to share their experiences and get support in a group setting. The aim of the first two days of this course is to help you run effective groups with the emphasis on developing and practising group work skills that are applicable across a wide range of different types of group work.

For people, who may go on to run mental health support groups, there is a third day focusing on group work content. This day has been developed by one of our tutors with lived experience of mental health difficulties and has run support groups in the community for a number of years. The content is influenced by the tutor’s own experiences of what helped him in his own recovery, which he shares to help others.

By the end of the first two days, you will:

Be able to share ideas for preparing and running groups
Know the importance of establishing and maintaining group rules
Consider different group dynamics and ways of encouraging equal participation
Know a range of facilitator styles and when to use different styles in different situations
Feel confident about running your own group
Be able to reflect on group progress and plan for people moving on.

If you opt to stay for the third day, you will:

Be familiar with the six principles of recovery in mental health
Be familiar with the outline of ten group work sessions for people experiencing mental health difficulties
Understand the importance of developing group members’ confidence by giving them some responsibility within the group
Understand the importance of setting milestones with group members.

Dates: 3, 4 and 5 July 2023

Times: 10am to 4pm

Venue: Rooms 2, 3 and 4, The Curve, Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, Bury New Road, Prestwich, Manchester M25 3BL