A workshop on empowering school staff was the focus of a meeting on a new phase of training for trainers.

The Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sport in collaboration with the Child & Adolescent Mental Health Initiative (CAMHI) recently held a workshop on the “Child & Adolescent Mental Health Education for Teachers” training programme and the new circular of the Ministry of Defence, concerning the launch of the Training of Trainers process, with the aim of multiplying the impact of the programme.

The meeting marks a crucial step towards the institutional integration of training in the public education system and was held in the presence of top-level officials, with a total participation of 95 people.

The meeting was attended by the Secretary General of the Ministry of National Defence of the Republic of Cyprus for Primary and Secondary Education and Special Education, Mr. Ioannis Papadomarkakis, and the Head of the Directorate of Special Education and Training, Mr. Ioannis Bousdounis, the Professor of Child Psychiatry of the D.Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Thessaloniki and member of the Scientific Coordinating Committee of the Initiative, Mrs. Aspasia Serdari, the Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist and Director-Coordinator of the Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Department of the General Hospital of Thessaloniki, Mrs. Evangelini (Lillian) Athanasopoulou, as well as the Psychologist and member of the Initiative, Mrs. Panagiota (Yuli) Balikou. The meeting was attended by training consultants for psychologists and social workers, heads of CDCs across the country, and education quality supervisors.

The institutional framework: the Circular 47258/D3

The implementation of the meeting was organised following the publication of Circular 47258/D3/20.4.2026 of the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, which sets the institutional framework for the launch of the new phase of Training of Trainers, with the aim of further dissemination and gradual institutional integration of the Basic Training Programme of the Initiative “Child & Adolescent Mental Health Programming for Educators”. The circular is addressed to Counsellors for Training of Psychologists, Counsellors for Training of Social Workers, Psychologists and Social Workers who serve in CDCs, EDCs or SMCs, inviting those who meet the prescribed criteria to follow the procedure for assuming the role of Trainers and their future registration in a relevant Register.

In the framework of the workshop, the Initiative team presented the broader Training Programme addressed to Teachers, analyzing its content and structure, as well as its thematic axes and methodology of implementation. Particular emphasis was placed on the framework of the Training of Trainers, as provided for in the relevant circular, while necessary clarifications were provided as to the next steps envisaged for the institutional integration of training in the public education system. The open discussion that followed gave room for fruitful dialogue and substantial exchange with the participants raising questions, comments and suggestions, which will be taken into account in the elaboration of the next steps of the programme.

Recall that the “Child & Adolescent Mental Health Literacy for Teachers” programme aims to enhance the capacity of teachers and members of the ECEC-EBP to recognise signs of mental distress manifested in the school context and respond appropriately within their role, not as clinical specialists, but as a critical link in a coherent system of support for children and adolescents.

In his address to the meeting, Papadomarkakis said that the Initiative’s School Staff Training Program comes to respond to the growing needs of the school community by being a modern, evidence-based intervention through a flexible model that combines theoretical training and applied practice. With this training, he said, teachers do not just acquire theoretical knowledge but are empowered with appropriate tools to more effectively support students in the school environment.

As for the Training of Trainers, he noted: “Our goal is to provide all-round support for the child and this is achieved through interdisciplinarity. We have a credible, valuable programme available to us and we should all support it.”

From the Initiative’s perspective, Lillian Athanasopoulou said: “Today’s meeting highlights the importance of prevention in mental health, as well as the need for coordinated interventions and meaningful interdisciplinary collaboration in any effort to strengthen the field of child and adolescent mental health. It is only through such a condition that a programme such as the Initiative can be effectively implemented at the scale needed.”

The participation of the audience was particularly warm and active , with key questions, useful comments and substantive remarks from the attendees, which enriched the discussion. Characteristically, a participant from a peripheral region of Greece pointed out: “We feel that we are on the right track [with this project], as prevention, especially in the early years of primary education and particularly in peripheral areas where there is insufficient staffing, is crucial for children’s mental health care.”

This meeting caps the continuing collaboration between the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Initiative and the Ministry of Education, Religion and Sport, with the common goal of improving the mental health of children and adolescents through supporting and strengthening the school ecosystem in which they are embedded.

  • The Initiative’s training program is implemented in collaboration with the Child Mind Institute (New York), by a popular network of institutions and professionals working in public mental health facilities across Greece. It is supported exclusively by the Staros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) as part of the SNF’s International Health Initiative (IHI). More about the CAMHI Initiative: camhi.gr