A wooden bench with a geometric design sits between two large terracotta pots, adorned with plants, against a textured brick wall.
Kitchen garden at Osborne House, East Cowes, Isle of Wight © Historic England
Kitchen garden at Osborne House, East Cowes, Isle of Wight © Historic England

What Is Mental Health First Aid Training and How Can Heritage Organisations Use It?

Learn about mental health first aid, who it could be useful for, and find training providers who can help you develop your staff or volunteer training programme around mental health.

What is this advice for?

This advice is for heritage organisations that are looking to develop their staff or volunteer training programme around mental health.

In 2024, Historic England commissioned Direct Access to conduct research on the experiences of disabled people in the heritage sector. Their report, published in 2025, highlighted that there was a significant gap in the disability training offered to staff and volunteers at heritage organisations. One of the key gaps highlighted was mental health awareness and mental health first aid training specifically.

This introduction looks at what mental health first aid is, who it could be useful for, and signposts some training providers.

What are the key points?

  • Mental health first aid is a good way to establish a baseline understanding of mental health in workplaces or among volunteers
  • Mental health is an important consideration for heritage organisations and should form part of risk assessments when planning projects, programming, and events
  • Mental health first aid is not a replacement for clinical interventions or professional support, and should form part of a wider strategy

What is mental health first aid training?

Mental health first aid (MHFA) is a qualification that trains people to recognise, understand and respond to mental health conditions.

Like standard first aid training, it is designed to equip people with first response skills to support and signpost people with mental health conditions. It does not train people to diagnose or treat mental health conditions.

Training includes a basic awareness of different mental health conditions as well as factors that can affect mental wellbeing. It teaches how to approach people and talk to them with sensitivity and care, and how to remain safe during such situations.

Mental Health First Aiders can become a trusted person in a workplace or volunteer setting whom others feel comfortable talking to. They learn how to hold challenging conversations, deal with sometimes upsetting disclosures, and guide people to sources of further support.

Under UK law, employers have a duty of care to take reasonable steps to ensure employee health, safety and wellbeing. Having Mental Health First Aiders in the workforce can help towards this and demonstrate a commitment to employee mental wellbeing.

In 2024, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) introduced mental health into its first aid needs assessment, and developed core standards for managing mental health at work. See HSE mental health advice for employees and managers 

Although volunteers are not employees, it is also important to consider your organisation’s duty of care to them. See HSE’s guide for managing volunteers 

How can heritage organisations embed mental health first aid into their work?

There has been significant research into the mental health and wellbeing impacts of heritage engagement, including work done by Historic England.

Heritage participation can bring people together, reduce isolation and loneliness, increase access to the outdoors and different types of physical activity, build connection to places and the past. The more heritage organisations are aware of mental health and the way that it can affect people, the more they can plan and develop work that supports mental health and wellbeing.

Understanding mental health should be a core part of training offered to staff and volunteers at heritage organisations so that they can understand different types of mental health and appreciate the impact that their work may have on people’s health and wellbeing. Any work that involves people must include an assessment of how it could impact mental health and wellbeing. This can include employees, volunteers, visitors and participants.

Mental health should be a line on risk assessments for heritage organisations – not just for your project or public facing work, but for your whole organisation. Mind, the England and Wales charity for mental health, released a report in 2024 that found;

  • 1 in 4 people in England will have a mental health problem each year
  • 42% of people reported feeling isolated at work
  • The annual economic and social cost of mental health is around £300 billion, according to the Centre for Mental Health

Although MHFA is not a solution or cure, it is a way for people experiencing mental health issues to be recognised and have that first conversation that could lead to further support being put in place. This potentially leads to better outcomes than if they had not had someone to reach out to at the time.

Putting mental health on a risk assessment and putting actions in place like committing to MHFA training across organisations can benefit individuals and organisations. It should also be part of a wider strategy, including access to employee assistance programmes, flexible working policies, and mental health informed HR practices.

MHFA training providers

There are several providers of MHFA training, including some national and more regional ones. The list below is not an exhaustive. Please note that Historic England is not affiliated in any way with the organisations listed here. We have collated this list from MHFA providers available in England as of June 2025. There is a range of options with varying price points. We encourage individuals and organisations to thoroughly investigate the options before selecting a supplier.

Also of interest

Mental Health: guidance for supporting better mental health through heritage interactions
Improving Mental Health Through Heritage: insights and data