Short Educational Courses - Frequently Asked Questions 1. What courses do you offer? 2. Who can attend your courses? 3. How much do you charge for courses? 4. How many people are in a course? 5. How do I receive information about courses? 6. Can I attend more than one course at a time? 7. How long do courses usually run for? 8. Do your courses provide counselling or therapy? 9. How do I book onto your courses? 10. When do your bookings close? 11. Can I attend a course without booking? 12. If I can’t attend the course I’ve booked onto, can I just not turn up? 13. I can’t attend this course, will you run it again? 14. I’d like to attend a course but I can’t make some of the dates, can I still attend? 15. What can I expect from a Coping Skills course? 16. Who delivers your courses? 17. You have no courses running at the moment but I feel I need support – what can I do? 18. Do you run Anxiety and Depression courses? 19. I am on a waiting list for Talking Space Services – can I attend your courses? 20. If I am already attending Talking Space can I still attend your courses? 21. Are there waiting lists for your courses? 22. I work with a client and I would like them to attend a Coping Skills Wellbeing course – can I make a booking for them? 23. Can I talk to someone about short courses?
1. What courses do you offer? We offer courses across four subject areas: Creative Courses Keeping Well Coping Skills Wellbeing Creative Courses include things like art, drama, crafts, music and silversmithing. Keeping Well includes courses like yoga, healthy eating, and topics such as computing & languages. Coping Skills are structured courses based on cognitive behavioural therapy. These include Self Esteem, Assertiveness, Managing Stress and Managing Strong Emotions. Our new course Practical Skills for Wellbeing course looks at some ways we can look after our wellbeing and how we can go about fitting these into daily life. Top of page
2. Who can attend your courses? Our courses are open to anyone aged 16 and above who is looking to improve their mental health and wellbeing. Top of page
3. How much do you charge for courses? Our coping skills and wellbeing course are currently offered for free. Some of our keeping well and creative activities may ask for a contribution towards materials. Top of page
4. How many people are in a course? For our Coping Skills and Wellbeing courses we have a minimum number of 7 people per course in order for it to run, and a maximum number of 16. Top of page
5. How do I receive information about courses? Our website is kept up-to-date with all our upcoming courses. If you don’t have internet access please feel free to give us a ring on 01865 263 744 Top of page
6. Can I attend more than one course at a time? You can attend more than one Keeping Well or a Creative course at a time. We ask that you attend one Coping Skills course at a time, and book onto any further courses in future programmes once you have had the chance to put the things you have learnt into practise. Top of page
7. How long do courses usually run for? Our courses run for one to two hours a week for 4 – 8 weeks on average, this can vary depending on the individual course. Always check course descriptions for details. Top of page
8. Do your courses provide counselling or therapy? No – our courses are not group counselling or therapy. They provide a learning opportunity for people to come together and learn new skills and techniques. Top of page
9. How do I book onto your courses? We ask that everyone interested in accessing Oxfordshire Mind services first arrange an Options session to discuss their wellbeing with one of our team. This allows us to highlight the courses or activities you might find most useful. Options sessions can be arranged by calling our Information Line on 01865 247 788, which is open 9.30am to 4.30pm (Mon – Thurs), 9.30am to 4pm (Fri). Top of page
10. When do your bookings close? For Coping Skills courses our bookings close a week before the course starts. This is to ensure that we have the guaranteed minimum number of 7 people to deliver the course. For Creative and Keeping Well courses bookings can close as late as the day before the course starts. Top of page
11. Can I attend a course without booking? No – it is really important that you book a place on each course so we know how many people to expect. Top of page
12. If I can’t attend the course I’ve booked onto, can I just not turn up? We understand that things can change. If you can’t attend a course that you have booked onto then you need to inform us in good time. The spaces on our courses are limited, and if you are unable to attend then we could offer your place to someone else. Booking places on courses and then not attending affects people on our waiting lists, whether courses can run, and may affect your future chance of attending courses. Top of page
13. I can’t attend this course, will you run it again? Coping Skills Yes, we have 4 Coping Skills courses and each of these courses runs several times a year across the county. We deliver courses on weekdays in the daytime and evenings
Assertiveness (Oxford only) Self Esteem Managing Strong Emotions Managing Stress
Wellbeing Courses Our practical ways to wellbeing course runs several times a month during weekdays, evenings and some weekends. Creative & Keeping Well We tend to run our courses repeatedly throughout the year, however some courses are a one off – please call the facilitator to check. If we know that there is a demand for a course, we are more likely to run it again. Top of page
14. I’d like to attend a course but I can’t make some of the dates, can I still attend? Coping Skills You can miss one session of the course, so long as it is not the first session. If you cannot make the first session then you cannot attend and should look at alternative/future courses. If you can not make two sessions then you cannot attend. Instead we would recommend booking onto a future course when you can attend all sessions to fully benefit from the course. Wellbeing As the Practical Ways to Wellbeing course is 4 weeks long and runs several times in each term we’d suggest attending when you are able to make all the sessions so that you can benefit fully from the course. Creative & Keeping Well As a general rule if you can’t make two sessions or more, we would suggest you book onto a future course to get the most benefit from the course. If you’re unsure then get in touch with the booking contact for the course to check. Top of page
15. What can I expect from a Coping Skills course? Coping Skills courses run for 6-8 weeks, for an average of two hours a week. They draw on a range of different approaches including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Motivational, Humanistic and Solution Focused. The aim of the courses are to equip people with skills and tools that can be put into place to better manage their mental health and wellbeing. The first session of each course is a pre-course meeting; this is a space for you to find out more about the sessions, and for us to find out more about what has led you to the course and what you’d like to get from attending. For Assertiveness, Managing Stress, and Self Esteem these pre-course meetings are in a group setting and are the first week of the course. For Managing Strong Emotions the pre-course meetings are on an individual basis with course facilitators Once you have been to the pre-course meeting, you will then progress onto the course. Each week builds upon the last and the sessions will be interactive and discussion based. We use case studies throughout the courses, and use home practise to set tasks for you to try out in-between sessions. To keep the groups safe we have working agreements and ask that everyone participates at a level that is comfortable for them. Top of page
16. Who delivers your courses? We have a team of Wellbeing Service Workers who deliver all of our courses. When we deliver courses which require an area of expertise outside of our knowledge base we buy in specialist teachers to deliver courses for us – such as Yoga, English for Speakers of Other Languages etc. We usually have two facilitators delivering each course. Top of page
17. You have no courses running at the moment but I feel I need support – what can I do? Oxfordshire Mind offers Options sessions that run throughout the county (and are also available over the phone). This offers a space to talk through your experiences with one of our Wellbeing team and discuss options for support that Mind and other local organisations can offer. To find out more about your local services contact the Oxfordshire Mind information line on 01865 24 77 88 or email info@oxfordshiremind.org.uk Top of page
18. Do you run Anxiety and Depression courses? Lots of people who attend our courses have experienced anxiety and depression; however we do not deliver specific courses. Our colleagues at Talking Space do provide Anxiety and Depression workshops, classes and over the phone support. For more information about their service you can visit their website (http://www.talkingspaceoxfordshire.org/) or call them on 01865 901 222 or email talkingspace@nhs.net
19. I am on a waiting list for Talking Space Services – can I attend your courses? Yes you can Top of page
20. If I am already attending Talking Space can I still attend your courses? If you are already using Talking Space we would recommend that you do not book onto our Coping Skills courses. Instead we suggest that you focus on one thing at a time and give yourself the chance to put what you have learnt into practise before booking a Coping Skills course with us. You are however welcome to attend a Keeping Well and Creative course at the same time as attending Talking Space Courses. Top of page
21. Are there waiting lists for your courses? Yes, we have waiting lists for our Coping Skills courses for those who have had an Options session with us and identified appropriate course(s). We can then make you aware of future courses. Top of page
22. I work with a client and I would like them to attend a Coping Skills or Wellbeing course – can I make a booking for them? Please advise your client to arrange an Options session with us to help identify the most appropriate course/activity. This can be done by calling our Information Line on 01865 247 788. Top of page
23. Can I talk to someone about short courses? Of course! Contact us on 01865 263 744 or shortcourses@oxfordshiremind.org.uk Top of page