People living with a serious mental illness can face a greater risk of developing preventable physical illnesses. Sometimes, this can be due to difficulty engaging with clinical staff and support services, making it much harder to get treatment. To help change this, the Serious Mental Illness Engagement Training was commissioned by Open Mental Health and the Somerset Integrated Care Board.
Changing the Narrative Around Serious Mental Illness
The training has been created entirely from the voice of lived experience. It is co-produced and co-delivered by a diverse team of individuals from across Open Mental Health and the National Health Service in Somerset. By sharing their own perspectives and stories, the team hopes to shift mindsets and change the narrative around serious mental illness.
Interactive Online Training
The team delivers the training online. These sessions are highly interactive, providing plenty of time for questions, discussions, and personal reflections within a psychologically safe and nurturing environment. Participants share and discover ways to ensure that people feel supported and heard in their everyday lives, and to make it easier and less daunting for people living with mental illnesses to engage with services,
The training covers the importance of building trust, offering hope, and taking time in a trauma-informed manner. It also looks at how conscious and unconscious biases can affect how we engage with people who have a serious mental illness.
Together, the group explores common barriers and finds helpful communication methods to support the individual and the person helping them.
Who is the Training For?
As Libby explains in the video, the SMI Engagement Training is open to anyone in Somerset whose work or volunteering role brings them into contact with people experiencing mental health challenges. Whether you are a doctor, a council employee, an emergency services worker, a housing association staff member, or anyone else interacting professionally with people living with mental illness, this training is for you.
The content has recently been updated and refreshed, so even if you have attended a session in the past, the team would love to see you again.
How to Book Your Place
The training sessions run for two and a half hours and include a break.
The next available dates for 2026 are:
- Tuesday 11 August
- Wednesday 23 September
- Tuesday 30 September
- Wednesday 22 October
- Tuesday 4 November
- Monday 8 December
All running from 10:00 am until 12:30 pm.
If you would like more details or want to book your space on the training, please email peerconnections@rethink.org.