We’re introducing a new online training course developed by aneemo staff training and development company and in partnership with the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID). The course has been designed to support cross-sector professionals to better meet the needs of people facing homelessness who have co-occurring substance use, mental health and physical health issues.

Training launch event and Q&A

We hosted a launch event on 3 October for the new training course ‘Improving Access to Services for People Experiencing Multiple Disadvantage and Co-occurring Conditions’. The webinar featured background to why the training was created, a preview of the course trailer course and a group discussion featuring Alison Keating, Head of Alcohol and Drugs at Office for Health Improvement and Disparities in London (OHID) and Nicholas Pleace, Professor of Social Policy at York University. You can watch the recording of this training below.

About the training

People experiencing multiple disadvantage with co-occurring mental health, substance use, neurodiversity and homelessness often face barriers when trying to access the support they need. Similarly, many services struggle to engage effectively with people experiencing multiple disadvantage and may label them ‘hard to engage’ or ‘entrenched’. This training course seeks to look behind these labels to give practitioners the skills, knowledge and expertise they need to effectively engage with and support people experiencing co-occurring conditions.

The comprehensive curriculum will benefit both frontline staff and system leaders across health, social care, the voluntary sector, and the criminal justice system.

The course consists of four modules with 23 bitesize training videos led by experts by profession and experts by experience, teaching you how to:

• develop an understanding of the individual, service and system level barriers that exist for people with multiple needs accessing services;
• recognise the prevalence of trauma and how to work in a trauma-Informed way;
• understand practical and creative approaches to assessment, engagement, and support;
• recognise the importance of gender informed service models and peer support

The course also covers the use of legislation such as the Care Act, Safeguarding, the Mental Capacity Act, NICE guidance, Drug Strategy and NHS Long-Term Plan, and what a trauma-informed criminal justice system could look like.

Ultimately you will be better able to help individuals overcome the barriers in the interface between physical health, mental health, and substance use services.

The course is available now. You can sign up here on the aneemo website.

Contact us

If you have any questions or comments, you can contact the Programme Manager, Alison Bearn on alison.bearn@nhs.net or the regional ICS project officers as below. Equally, you can contact contact@aneemo.com.

• North Central London ICS: Abisoye Okutubo – abisoye.okutubo@nhs.net
• North East London ICS: David Bryceland – david.bryceland@nhs.net
• South West London ICS: Jurgita Mikelsonaite –  j.mikelsonaite@nhs.net
• North West London ICS: Scarlett Stock – scarlett.stock@nhs.net
• South East London ICS: Rae Clarke – rae.clarke@nhs.net