Macedon Ranges
Teen Mental Health Instructors

Live4Life Macedon Ranges is seeking enthusiastic and passionate community members to undertake Teen Mental Health First Aid® Instructor training

The Live4Life approach ensures communities build their own capacity to support each other. Investing in local people to become Mental Health First Aid® Instructors strengthens local sustainability.

People working in local organisations who are suited to become instructors include school staff, social workers, youth workers, council staff, councillors, health promotion workers and other suitably qualified community members.

This activity is supported by funding from Murray PHN through the Australian Government’s PHN Program.

Through the delivery of evidence-based suicide prevention and mental health education across the Macedon Ranges, this opportunity aims to ensure consistent, research-based messages, knowledge and language circulates within Macedon Ranges. This is essential to reducing stigma, increasing mental health literacy and encouraging positive help-seeking behaviours.

Learn about Live4Life’s core values and principles of practice.

Becoming a Mental Health First Aid® Instructor 

The instructor training requires a commitment of training in Macedon Ranges as follows:

  • Teen Mental Health First Aid®: 4 days training plus travel

For more information about the course please visit the Mental Health First Aid Australia website here.

All training costs will be covered for this opportunity.

Once trained you will be required to support Live4Life Macedon Ranges to deliver Teen Mental Health First Aid® (TMHFA) courses in local secondary schools and across the community at no cost to Live4Life Macedon Ranges.

Teen Mental Health First Aid®

Your contribution (voluntary) will include running a minimum of four complete Teen MHFA courses with two age cohorts, Junior (Year 8) and/or Senior (Year 10 students).

Time commitment includes: Up to 3 x 75 minute sessions plus preparation and administration time (approximately 2 hours) per complete course.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) will be required for all successful applicants, which will outline the key roles and responsibilities of the instructor, endorsing employer (if applicable) and Live4Life Macedon Ranges. This MOU will need to be signed prior to completing the instructor training.

Delivery of Mental Health First Aid® Courses

It is intended that you will continue to deliver the training, at no cost to Live4Life Macedon Ranges, into the future (or through a work release arrangement) to Live4Life Macedon Ranges. Travel costs may be subsidised to deliver training — this should be discussed with the Partnership Group. 

If your circumstances change and you are no longer able to deliver the training, there is an expectation that you will repay a portion of the cost of the instructor training to Live4Life Macedon Ranges, so a replacement Instructor can be funded. This will be negotiated based on the number of courses you have delivered and your specific circumstances. The full value of Teen MHFA Instructor Training is $3300.

Ongoing delivery of training will be negotiated with the local Live4Life Partnership Group. The intention is that local trainers are able to undertake training as part of their current work commitments on an ongoing basis in community for free.

Selection criteria for applications

  1. Demonstrated experience of working with young people and adults and able to build safe and supportive environments.

  2. Demonstrated ability to deliver the training within your current work commitments (as described above). Please discuss this with your employer, as a  letter of support from your employer may be required if you are successful in your application.

  3. Demonstrated high skill level in public speaking and being able to communicate with different audiences, such as professionals, parents and secondary school-aged students.

  4. Demonstrated experience in facilitating and managing groups.

  5. An understanding of adolescent development, youth mental health and support systems in your community is desirable.

  6. Demonstrated high level of emotional intelligence and critical reflection.

  7. Evidence that you live in, work in, or have a significant connection to the Macedon Ranges.