Colleagues that volunteered for the role have undergone mental health awareness courses to better assist their colleagues in seeking support for mental wellbeing issues.
Terry Smith, Plant Manager at CPI in Beaconsfield and one of the site’s Mental Health First Aiders, said the voluntary role appealed after aspects of his work and home life changed. “Before becoming a Mental Health First Aider I was probably someone who rarely showed any type of emotion,” he said. “Neither was I someone that my staff felt they could come and talk to if they needed to. But this was something I wanted to change; I wanted them to see that I wasn’t the person they thought I was and that they could come to me with anything they needed to.”