About this course

Why it exists

A child in distress rarely says so. They show it instead — in anger, in silence, in sleep that will not come, in schoolwork that falls away. The people who live alongside that child every day are the first who can see those changes, and often the only ones.

This course does not make anyone a specialist. It teaches three things: notice, support, refer. Naming an illness and deciding a treatment are deliberately not part of it — those belong to a specialist, and a wrong name can follow a child for years.

Three levels, taken in order

Everyone begins at Level 1. The next level opens only when the one before it is complete — including for counsellors and senior staff.

• Level 1Foundation What health means, why behaviour is a message, the six warning signs, the four serious signs, and looking after yourself.
• Level 2Identification & Intervention The 0 to 3 scale, when to refer a child, and how to write a referral note that someone can act on.
• Level 3Advanced Case Management Rating sheets, care plans, referral and follow-up, and one case worked through from first notice to close.

What a certificate means

Each level ends with a test. Eighty per cent is the pass mark, it may be retaken without limit, and there is no time pressure of any kind.

Every certificate carries a QR code and a verification number, so anyone can check it is genuine. No score is printed on it: a certificate records that someone completed the training, not how well they did on one afternoon.

Children's privacy

Every child in every practice form is fictional. Real children are recorded by case code and never by name, and records are held only as long as they are needed. This follows the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.