Training
SFA: Heavy Industries
Addressing Mental Health and Suicide Prevention in Construction and Heavy Industries
Workers in construction and heavy industries face some of the UK’s highest mental health and suicide risks, with rates nearly four times the national average due to long hours, physical demands, job insecurity, and stigmatisation of mental health support.
Research from the Construction Leadership Council and CIOB underscores these challenges, noting that, despite progress in mental health awareness, stigma and limited resources remain barriers to improvement.
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Programme Overview
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Heavy Industry (USI)
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Heavy Industry (Lite)
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Book Your Place
Programmes Overview:
This programme provides Learners with the foundational knowledge and practical skills needed to effectively intervene in situations where someone may be contemplating suicide.
Designed for individuals working in construction or other heavy industry services, this programme equips you with the tools to recognise the signs of suicide thoughts and behaviour. It shows you how to initiate lifesaving conversations and connect individuals with appropriate resources. Whether you're a healthcare professional, educator, HR personnel, community leader, or concerned family member, this programme empowers you to make a real difference.
Key Learning Outcomes:
- Understanding Suicide and Its Causes: Gain insights into the complex factors that can lead to thoughts of suicide and suicide behaviours, including mental health issues, emotional distress, and societal pressures.
- Recognising Signs: Learn how to identify the verbal, behavioural, and situational indicators that someone may be thinking of suicide.
- Effective Communication Techniques: Develop skills to engage in sensitive and supportive conversations, helping to de-escalate crises and offer hope to those in need.
- Immediate Intervention Strategies: Acquire practical tools and approaches for providing immediate support, including how to refer individuals to mental health professionals and other resources.
- Ethical Considerations: Understand the ethical responsibilities involved in suicide prevention, including confidentiality, consent, and the importance of self-care.
Programmes Format and Duration:
This is a concise, focused programme delivered online, making it accessible for busy professionals. The programme can be delivered in both a full day and half day training and includes a mix of interactive presentations, real-life case studies, and role-playing exercises specifically related to financial stress, ensuring participants leave with practical, actionable skills.
Who Should Attend:
Anyone in a position to support individuals who have a vulnerability to suicide thoughts, including supervisors, health and safety officers, site managers and team leads, labourers and trades people, contractors and sub-contractors, HR managers, project managers, and concerned family members. No prior experience in mental health or suicide prevention is required.
Certification:
Upon completion of the Suicide First Aid® for Heavy Industry USI (1 day programme), participants have the option to take the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) Level 4 award in Suicide First Aid®. This is a written assignment and upon completion Learners will receive an official qualification certificate from RSPH.
Please note the half-day Suicide First Aid® Heavy Industry Lite course does not have a qualification route.
Why This Programme Matters: By equipping yourself with the skills taught in this programme, you become a crucial part of the effort to reduce suicide rates and save lives. Every intervention can make a difference.
Part 1: Understanding the Foundations of Suicide Prevention
- Introduction and Programme Overview: Gain a comprehensive understanding of the programme's objectives and structure.
- Working with Societal Attitudes Toward Suicide: Explore how societal views impact individuals at risk and shape prevention strategies.
- How Personal Values Influence Suicide Thoughts: Discover the link between an individual’s values and the development of suicide ideation.
- The Hidden Toll®: Understand the stigma surrounding suicide and the experiences of survivors who have been bereaved by suicide.
- The Ripple Effect®: Delve into how suicide affects not just the individual, but the wider community, creating a ripple of impact.
- Understanding Thoughts of Suicide and Suicide Behaviour: Learn about the various causes of thoughts of suicide and the differences between intention and outcome in suicide behaviour.
- Intention vs. Outcome of Behaviour®: Examine the critical distinctions between a person’s intentions and the outcomes of their actions.
- Possible causes of Suicide Thougths: Gain insights into the complex and varied causes that can lead to suicide thoughts.
Part 2: Strategic Approaches to Suicide Prevention.
- Population-Based Approach to Suicide Prevention: Explore strategies to prevent suicide on a broader scale.
- Suicide Prevention – Intervention – Postvention: Learn the key stages of suicide prevention, from early intervention to postvention support.
- Partnership Working – First Aid Approach: Understand how to collaborate effectively with others to provide Suicide First Aid® to individuals struggling.
- “I’m Really Glad You Told Me”®: Watch a powerful audio-visual presentation featuring real-life scenarios and colleagues who have successfully intervened in cases of suicide.
Part 3: Practical Skills for Supporting Individuals
- Meeting the Needs of a Person thinking about Suicide: Learn how to address the specific needs of individuals whose suicide thoughts are driven by different pressures.
- Suicide-Safety Guide – 3 Step Model:
- Step 1 – Recognising Suicide Thoughts: Understand how to identify warning signs and ask the right questions in conversations with those thinking about suicide.
- Step 2 – Listening to Understand and Exploring Options: Explore the importance of listening and how to discuss and explore different support options with a person having thoughts of suicide.
Part 4: Ensuring Safety and Self-Care in Suicide Prevention
- Step 3 – Helping You Cope: Strategies for supporting both the person with thoughts of suicide and yourself through challenging situations.
- Future Learning: Learn effective ways to document interventions and identify opportunities for ongoing education and development in suicide prevention.
- Self-Care for Suicide First Aiders®: Understand the importance of self-care and how to manage the emotional impact of working with those affected by suicide.
Part 1: Understanding the Foundations of Suicide Prevention
- Introduction and Programme Overview: Gain a comprehensive understanding of the programme's objectives and structure.
- Working with Societal Attitudes Toward Suicide: Explore how societal views impact individuals at risk and shape prevention strategies.
- How Personal Values Influence Suicide Thoughts: Discover the link between an individual’s values and the development of suicide ideation.
- The Hidden Toll®: Understand the stigma surrounding suicide and the experiences of survivors who have been bereaved by suicide.
- The Ripple Effect®: Delve into how suicide affects not just the individual, but the wider community, creating a ripple of impact.
- Understanding Thoughts of Suicide and Suicide Behaviour: Learn about the various causes of thoughts of suicide and the differences between intention and outcome in suicide behaviour.
- Intention vs. Outcome of Behaviour®: Examine the critical distinctions between a person’s intentions and the outcomes of their actions.
- Exploring the Causes of Suicide Ideation: Gain insights into the complex and varied causes that can lead to suicide thoughts.
- ‘I’m Really Glad You Told Me’®: Watch a powerful short film featuring a real-life case study of someone who contemplated suicide and was persuaded to choose life.
Part 2: Practical Strategies for Suicide Intervention and Self-Care
- The Suicide Safety Guide: Learn the 3-Step Model designed to equip Suicide First Aiders® with essential skills.
- Step 1 – Recognising Suicide Feelings: Master the ability to identify when someone is thinking about suicide and ask the right, life-saving questions.
- Step 2 – Exploring and Understanding Options: Develop skills to engage in meaningful conversations that explore the person’s options and offer hope.
- Step 3 – Self-Care for Suicide First Aiders®: Understand the importance of self-care and how to manage the emotional impact of working with those affected by suicide.
To sign up to one of our open SFA courses today, visit our Eventbrite here:
To book a course for your organisation, get in touch at training@ncspt.org.uk
