NOW ATTRACTS 40 ACADEMIC POINTS AT MASTERS LEVEL THROUGH LONDON METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY.

Ferns Associates Race Equality and Cultural Capability Training for Trainers 6 day Programme is now  Endorsed by the National Skills Academy For Social Care having achieved the Excellence Award.

 This course attracts 40 academic credits at Masters Level after successful completion of assessment.

 Our RECC Practitioners course (delivered by Ferns Associates) attracts 20 academic points on successful University assessment.

 Courses can be taken with or without  formal assessment. 

Training devised and delivered by the authors of the RECC materials for practitioners Peter Ferns and by Premila Trivedi

(Black Service User Associate).

Peter and Premila both have many years of experience as trainers, consultants and authors around BME mental health issues

and have worked together on various projects over many years.

Ferns Associates have a long track-record in training consultancy and research in Health and Social Care and are highly

skilled in training delivery in partnership with service users and carers.

What is RECC?

The RECC programme is a central part of the Government’s national strategy to improve mental health services for Black

and Minority Ethnic (BME) people.

In the RECC Training for Trainers Programme you will be learning to deliver material which has been designed and developed

by Ferns Associates, using tried & tested methods gained from many years experience of delivering race equality training to

MH practitioners.   In keeping with its strong ethos of service user participation, Ferns Associates has worked closely with a

range of BME service users to develop the RECC materials and specifically designed the Training Programme to be delivered

by both MH staff and service user/carer trainers working in co-training partnerships.

The RECC materials will help Trusts to achieve some key standards in the Healthcare Commission's Annual Review,align organisations

with the Race Relations Act and Human Rights legislation as well as local Equality and Diversity strategies. The materials also

strongly reinforce the Government's new ‘Personalisation’ agenda and translates these principles into practical tools and approaches.

Does RECC take other forms of Equality into account?

 RECC uses theories and models that are applicable to and useful for promoting all forms of Equality. We firmly believe that promoting the different strands of Equality is fundamentally about good practice which benefits all service users and their families. For example, in the Training for Trainers programme we ensure trainers are equipped to tackle different types of discrimination and are exposed to an inclusive, reflective and value-based approach to training delivery

RECC T4T Learning Outcomes

By the end of the RECC-T4T Programme, participants will:

• understand the context, purpose, structure and content of the RECC materials and training programme and their importance in helping to shape appropriate and accessible mental health services for BME people.
• be more aware of their own beliefs, assumptions and views  by focusing on underpinning values, evidence base and theoretical models in the RECC materials and  engaging in personal reflective learning throughout the course
• have directly experienced the benefits and challenges of working in  co-training pairs (ideally service user/carer and staff pairs) and reflected on the importance of partnership working in this way
• have developed and practised the key skills needed to plan, deliver and facilitate the RECC training programme to MH practitioners and received constructive feedback and coaching from tutors and peers

• have demonstrated the key skills needed to deliver RECC training against a template of good practice to achieve an acceptable standard of planning, delivery and evaluation of the RECC Training Programme to practitioners.

What does the RECC Training for Trainers Programme consist of?

We offer an excellent six-day Training for Trainers programme designed for up to 16 participants. The RECC Training for Trainers

Programme (T4T) consists of an initial three-day workshop, followed 2 weeks later by a two day workshop and six weeks later a final one day workshop.

Some comments from our RECC T4T participants:

“This has been one of the very best courses I have done in the last 16yrs. Challenging, hard work but satisfying. And the group was wonderful –

I shall miss it…”

“Fascinating, relevant, inspiring” “I’ve learned masses – a fantastic time.”

Excellent, informative, supportive. Has improved my training widely.”

“It was so good as a carer to work with professionals on an equal basis”

“Really enjoyed it and I want to be involved at all levels and felt valued as a service user and potential professional by you –thank you!”

‘Dr Safi Afghan, Consultant Psychiatrist at Walsall Teaching PCT, who participated in the pilot training programme, says:

“I strongly feel that if the concepts of RECC material are integrated in to mental health and psychiatry training, there are likely to be far better outcomes and

satisfaction levels for BME service users.’ (DH press release, 19 November 2007)

For further details of RECC Training for Trainers and to register your interest in a future Open Course contact:

Peter or Celia (Directors of Ferns Associates) on 0208-641-9358 or

e-mail: ferns@dsl.pipex.com website: www.fernsassociates.co.uk

This course is  available as an in-house programme.