Teen Mental Health First Aid® – Mental Health First Aid Australia

Program description

The Teen Mental Health First Aid (Teen MHFA) Program is a practical, skills-based course that teaches secondary students skills to support their peers and seek help from a trusted adult.

Teen MHFA focuses on improving the mental health literacy of a whole student cohort, to reduce the behaviours and attitudes that often prevent teens from getting the help and support they need.

The course is delivered to an entire cohort of students by independent Licensed Teen MHFA Instructors via face-to-face, classroom-based sessions, with 2 variations of the curriculum, one for students in years 7–9 and one for students in years 10–12.

Secondary school staff can also apply to attend a 4-day face-to-face Teen MHFA Instructor Training Course to enable them to deliver the Teen MHFA Program to students directly.

The Teen MHFA Program must be delivered to an entire cohort of students (i.e. to every student in a year level with a maximum of 30 students per class per session) and can only be delivered in schools where a minimum of 10% of staff have been trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid.

Intended outcomes

• Reduced stigmatising attitudes
• Increased mental health literacy
• Increased number of adults rated as helpful for mental health problems
• Increased help-seeking behaviours
• Increased confidence to recognise and respond to mental health problems in a peer

Program details

Implementation considerations

• Target population: All secondary school students in Years 7–12. There are 2 age-appropriate versions of this course available: Teen 7–9 for lower secondary and Teen Senior Secondary for upper secondary. Additionally, secondary school staff can become a licensed Teen MHFA instructor by completing the Instructor Training Course (ITC) to build in house capacity to teach students directly.
• Program adaptability: The program is suitable for asylum seeker and refugee students.
• Staffing: Backfilling may not be required for delivery of Teen MHFA courses to students, however it is likely that backfilling will be required while the school train their 10% of staff in Youth MHFA training, and if staff complete the 4-day Teen MHFA Instructor Training Course
• Training requirements: The Teen MHFA course is delivered via 3 x face-to-face classroom sessions on non-consecutive days. The sessions run for 60 minutes each for Years 7–9 and 75 minutes each for Years 10–12 and must be delivered to classrooms in their usual size, with no more than 30 students (i.e. classrooms cannot be joined together). For Teen MHFA courses delivered to the students, schools will need to provide access to a physical training space/classroom, and reliable internet and working computer/laptop and projector. Each student will receive a manual (workbook) and completion certificate.
• Factors to consider: The Teen MHFA Program must be delivered to an entire cohort of students (i.e. to every student in a year level) and can only be delivered in schools where a minimum of 10% of staff have been trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid.
  • Instructor Training requires submission of an online application at least 4 weeks prior to training commencement, demonstrating how they meet the selection criteria. Successful applicants will then attend a 4-day face-to-face Instructor Training Course. Mental Health First Aid Australia will support Licensed Teen Instructors through provision of Communities of Practice, online newsletters, webinars and articles. Instructors have access to a team of specialists who provide one-on-one support to ensure Instructors confidently deliver high quality courses.
• Australian context: Teen MHFA was developed in Australia.

Cost

Minimum cost

$2,000+

Detailed cost

The 2025 cost of the Teen MHFA course (delivered face-to-face to students by an external instructor) is $880 (including GST) per session (3 sessions required) or $2,640 per course and is inclusive of all training materials.

The 2025 cost to become a Licensed Teen MHFA Instructor:

• Public 4-day Instructor Training Course is $4,160 (GST not applicable) per person.
• Private 4-day Instructor Training Course with venue hire and catering provided by MHFA is $4,404 (including GST) per person.
• Private 4-day Instructor Training Course without venue hire and catering provided by MHFA is $4,290 (including GST) per person.
• Annual Instructor License Fee is $200 per person (including GST).

If a school has an embedded Licensed Teen MHFA Instructor, they can purchase the materials required for delivery, costs in 2025 are as follows:

• Teen 7–9 MHFA course manual (per item) is $18.70 (including GST)
• Teen 10–12 MHFA course manual (per item) is $18.70 (including GST)
• Certificate of completion is $2 (including GST)
• Postage dependent on volume and location of delivery.

Accommodation and travel costs for Instructor Training courses will be an additional expense to schools and are not covered in MHFA program fees.

Teen MHFA Instructor Training participants must be a current Youth MHFA Licensed Instructor and should factor this cost into their budget.