Horse Sport Ireland and Jigsaw Launch New eLearning Course in Support of Youth Mental Health
‘One Good Coach’
Horse Sport Ireland are delighted to announce a new eLearning course in collaboration with Jigsaw, the youth mental health charity. The new ‘One Good Coach’ resource has been created to help coaches and equestrian volunteers upskill to support young people’s mental health through the delivery of equestrian sport.
While it is widely known that participation in sport has many positive benefits to mental and physical health, there is also overwhelming evidence that the rates of anxiety and depression amongst young people has increased in recent years.
The One Good Coach course, which has also been adopted by the GAA, LGFA, the Camogie Association, and Swim Ireland, offers participants a greater understanding of mental health and of the importance of their role as One Good Adult.
The online course, which will be incorporated into the HSI continuous professional development programme for HSI accredited coaches, will also be made available to affiliates and volunteers within the sport horse industry. Upon completion, participants will have a greater awareness of how to promote and support young peoples’ mental health in their role as coach.
Rebecca Murphy, Youth Mental Health Promotion Manager of Jigsaw said:
“The presence of a One Good Adult in a young person’s life is strongly linked to better mental health and wellbeing. Coaches are in a key position to play this role in the lives of the young people they coach. Jigsaw is proud to partner with Horse Sport Ireland to bring this online course to coaches in Equestrian sports to give them the knowledge to promote and support young people’s mental health.”
Horse Sport Ireland Interim Head of Breeding, Innovation and Development Sonja Egan said:
“Horse Sport Ireland are excited to support Jigsaw and the promotion of youth mental health with the introduction of the One Good Coach eLearning course. This new course will help to raise awareness of the challenges our young equestrians face while providing coaches, volunteers and parents with the information needed to seek further supports.
We recognise the importance of encouraging good mental health practices within the equestrian community and believe that the One Good Coach course will be a fantastic resource not only to enhance the HSI Coaching programmes, but to also encourage more open discussion on the importance of mental health in equestrianism.”
Horse Sport Ireland encourages all equestrian coaches, parents, and volunteers to participate in this new initiative as a start to promoting better mental health and wellbeing within the sport horse industry.
The One Good Coach eLearning course is available here.
This information was published on the HSI website HERE
