Family Drug Support 2024 Annual Report

31 F eedback from attendees at volunteer Training… o “ The philosophy of person-centred harm reduction that you're building this on is very powerful. Thank you! ” o “ FDS is a fantastic model of supportive practice … Trainers are worth their weight in gold, thank you! o “ Very professional, educational, real-life situations ” FDS Volunteer Training – Facilitator … Support Group Facilitator Training is run by Tony and is a full day workshop for volunteers and FDS staff, generally these people have already been through the Volunteer Training for the Telephone Support Line. FDS provides this additional training to volunteers who are interested in being involved in the delivery of our face to face and online support meetings. This training includes modules on: • Other models of family support • The FDS model of family support • The roles of Facilitators, Co-Facilitators and helpers • Problematic group members • Language, Labels and Unhelpful concepts • Themes that occur in groups • Group rules and things not to do • Stages of Change for Families and Substance users • Communication strategies and negotiation skills • Self-disclosure and discussion points A comprehensive manual is provided to potential facilitators with guidance on how to promote and advertise new groups, and the reporting requirements for recording attendee numbers and previous attendance. Trainees are then stepped through a process of attending a group with an experienced facilitator as an observer, then potentially as a helper, co-facilitator or facilitator. All volunteer group facilitators have scheduled debriefing with FDS staff every month to discuss the group or groups they have facilitated, or at any other time if a difficult/challenging situation has arisen. This provides an opportunity for the volunteer to talk about any issues/challenges they have encountered at the group, any triggers that have arisen for them, and guidance on strategies to handle these. Nationally FDS facilitated one Support Group Facilitator Training course in the 2023/24 FY which was attended by seven volunteers and four staff members.