Mental Health Awareness Training at Work: A Practical Approach

Most organisations know mental health matters. What’s harder is knowing what to do about it.

How do you support people without crossing boundaries?

How do you avoid saying the wrong thing or nothing at all?

How do you move beyond “awareness” into something that actually helps?

These questions came up again and again during a recent full-day Mental Health Awareness in the Workplace training we facilitated.

And they’re questions we hear from many organisations who are trying to do the right thing.

What stood out from the day wasn’t just the content shared but how people engaged, shared and what they left with.

Many mental health sessions mean well, but still leave people unsure.

Some are too clinical, others can be too high-level.

Many raise awareness, but stop short of giving people the confidence to act.

When put into a workplace context, this can set off a ripple effect.

People care but hesitate... we notice something feels off but don’t know what to say.

We worry about overstepping, so we stay silent.

Good mental health training should reduce that uncertainty, not add to it.

This programme was built around one simple idea - confidence comes from clarity and practice, not information alone.

A large part of the day was spent working through realistic workplace scenarios.

Not to perform or to role-play perfectly but to practise how conversations might actually unfold at work across different situations.

Participants explored how to:

• Notice early warning signs

• Start a supportive conversation

• Use a simple response framework appropriately

Doing this together with guidance and time to reflect helped people learn from one another and see that there isn’t just one “right” way.

That’s where confidence starts to grow.

The session also included guided group discussions and individual reflection.

Participation was encouraged but there was no pressure to share personal stories, and no expectation to disclose anything sensitive.

Instead, conversations focused on common workplace patterns, the kinds of pressures, behaviours, and situations many people recognise but rarely talk about openly.

This allowed learning to happen in a way that felt respectful, grounded, and psychologically safe.

One important part of the programme focused on self-care - not as a wellness trend, but as a responsibility.

Participants explored:

• What healthy boundaries look like at work

• How to recognise their own limits

• Why supporting others sustainably means not carrying more than your role requires

The message was simple: you can’t pour from an empty cup.

Supporting others starts with understanding your own capacity.

By the end of the day, people weren’t saying they had all the answers.

What they did have was:

• Clearer understanding of their role

• More confidence to reach out and check in

• A better sense of how to show care without feeling the need to fix everything

Overall feedback was very positive, with most participants rating the programme 5 out of 5, and the remaining participant rating it 4 out of 5.

Feedback consistently pointed to the same things: practical tools, space to practise, and conversations that felt real.

Good mental health awareness training doesn’t turn employees into counsellors.

It gives people:

• clarity about their role

• confidence to connect

• and permission to care with boundaries

That’s how healthier workplaces are built.

Not through grand gestures but through small, human moments repeated over time.

If your organisation is exploring mental health awareness training and wants a practical, responsible approach, we’re always happy to share more about how this programme is designed and delivered.