Frontline Families

About Frontline Families

Thanks to a grant from The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, we are able to partner with Combat2Coffee to support service people, veterans, and their families across Suffolk.

Through this grant, Suffolk Mind is also offering free training to people who support military personnel and their families to cope with the effects of trauma and mental ill health.

Frontline Families offers courses on understanding mental health, supporting mental health, and understanding trauma.

We understand that there is less support for the partners, families and friends of those serving or veterans. This service is here to give you knowledge, practical skills, and the confidence to support yourself and those around you.

Free resources are also available for you to download on this page. The information includes Understanding Nightmares, Quick Tips for mental health, and advice on sleep.

Please note: this is not a crisis service.

For urgent help for you or someone you know, please contact your GP, visit A&E, call 999 or 111, or visit our Help Directory for more options.

Who is Frontline Families for?

This service is available to:

People currently serving in the armed forces
Veterans
Families, partners and friends of a serviceperson
People supporting service personnel and families (for example, chaplaincy, peer support, family liaison)

What support is on offer?

Frontline Families is able to offer a variety of support and courses free of charge including:

Understanding mental health workshop

The Mental Health Toolkit: The Essentials course is an interactive online course that lasts half a day. In this course we introduce you to the Mental Health Continuum and the Emotional Needs and Resources approach to mental health, we also talk about sleep, and look at the barriers to meeting our needs. This course has a small group of attendees, usually between 12 and 16 people. Our trainers are trained psychotherapists who are warm, friendly and knowledgeable.

Understanding Trauma course

The Mental Health Toolkit: Understanding Trauma course offers insights into how and why we experience trauma, the causes of flashbacks and PTSD, and ways to support yourself or someone else. This is an interactive, online course lasting two consecutive days. This course has a small group of attendees, usually between 12 and 16 people and our trainers are experienced psychotherapists.

Supporting Mental Health course

Our The Mental Health Toolkit: Supporting Mental Health course is run over two, non-consecutive days. It is delivered online and is an interactive session. We teach you practical and effective communication techniques and give you space and time to practice them. We delve deeper into the Emotional Needs and Resources approach to mental health and how it can help you and those around you. We also train you in how to have challenging conversations and support people in distress or who are unwell whilst also looking after yourself.

Peer support training

If you are supporting others for example in a peer support group, as family liaison, or through a chaplaincy role, we can help you develop your skills and confidence. We can support you to develop your effective communication skills and mental health knowledge.

Direct 1:1 support

We have partnered with Combat2Coffee to offer an outreach service. Please let us know if you need this support in the referral form by selecting ‘Direct Support’.

How do I get support?

You can self-refer using our online form. It usually takes about ten minutes to fill in.

When you reach the part of the form about the support you would prefer, please select as many options as you need to. We will then be in touch to talk about what is on offer, for example the next online course dates, or other support you’re able to access.

Free resources

Understanding Nightmares booklet

Find out more

Quick Tips: Sleep

Find out more

Quick Tips: Panic attacks

Find out more

Signposting for children and young people

Find out more

How to get better sleep

Find out more

Resources hub

Find out more

Suffolk Mind services

Borderline personality disorder service: Waves

Waves is an innovative service for people with a diagnosis of, or traits of, Borderline personality disorder (BPD). It offers weekly sessions that provide a safe, supportive and empowering environment.

Find out more

Counselling

Anyone in Suffolk (excluding Waveney) who is 18 or over can easily access our counselling service for one-on-one support from our counsellors. Counselling provides you with the opportunity to talk about issues and any challenging emotions you have in a private, secure setting.

Find out more

Eating Recovery service

Our Eating Recovery service is for people who are living with an eating disorder or disordered eating. We provide safe, supportive weekly sessions over a 12-month period.

Find out more

Employment support: Suffolk Work Well

Suffolk Work Well (SWW) is here to help you gain, regain or retain employment. We know that appropriate work, combined with the right support, is good for people’s mental health.

Find out more

Evening telephone support: Suffolk Night Owls

The Suffolk Night Owls Telephone Support Line is available to anyone in Suffolk (excluding Waveney) who needs emotional support, including those with complex emotional needs and anyone struggling with loneliness, depression or anxiety.

Find out more

GreenCare: Outdoors for wellbeing

We have allotments in Haverhill, Bury St Edmunds and Ipswich which offer you the opportunity to learn about gardening and contribute to the creation of a thriving growing space that benefits everyone. You can also make new friends and get support from other group members.

Find out more

Health and wellbeing groups: Open Space

Open Space is a number of health and wellbeing groups run by trained staff and supported with volunteers. It has been developed with the involvement of participants and provides social activities and mental health and wellbeing related discussions.

Find out more

Menopause & Me

Menopause & Me provides support and guidance for people dealing with the menopause and perimenopause.

We also help employers in local businesses to support their teams, and provide employment support for those struggling with the (peri)menopause at work.

Find out more

SNELCAS (Long Covid support)

Suffolk Mind are working with Suffolk and Northeast Essex Long COVID Assessment Service (SNELCAS) to support clients affected by Long Covid.

If you have long COVID and would like support, please contact SNELCAS first on 0300 123 2425, or email ccc.snelcas@esneft.nhs.uk.

Find out more

Supported housing

Our aim is to provide single supported housing to ensure a successful tenancy for those that have suffered mental illness. Our housing services embrace recovery approaches for mental health and wellbeing; a holistic, enabling, person centred approach to mental distress, disadvantage and social exclusion.

Find out more

We value your feedback

If you’d like to let us know your experience of using a Suffolk Mind service, including ways we can improve, please complete this form.

Our team regularly reviews feedback to help us improve the support services that we offer.

Get in touch

Looking for more info about something?
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Stuck in a rut?

Feeling terrible can be, well, terrible. If you need urgent help or are experiencing a crisis, click here to find some useful links and helplines we can vouch for.

Help directory

We value your feedback

If you’d like to let us know your experience of using a Suffolk Mind service, including ways we can improve, please complete this form.

Our team regularly reviews feedback to help us improve the support services that we offer.

Frontline Families

About Frontline Families

Please note: this is not a crisis service.

Who is Frontline Families for?

What support is on offer?

How do I get support?

Free resources

Suffolk Mind services

We value your feedback

Get in touch

Stuck in a rut?

We value your feedback

Accreditations & Awards