Discovery College West 

Recovery Education and engagement initiatives have been active all over Ireland for many years. As part of this programming, co productions and workshops were held for community members to support the mission of recovery education in Roscommon and East Galway. While recovery education initiatives reached a wide population and has made incredible impacts to personal and community recovery, a gap still existed around the needs of young people. 

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Feedback from young participants highlighted that although recovery education programmes were addressing topics they found interesting, some parts of the workshops did not always feel relevant to their lives. Young people face their own unique challenges, but they also bring valuable strengths to recovery education. We wanted to make sure their experiences were truly reflected, and that their voices, strengths, and potential were central in co-producing and facilitating programmes designed to support them.

 

And so the Discovery College was born! 

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​ Discovery College West, which is the first of its kind in Ireland, introduces a brand-new 
recovery focussed way of learning, where workshops are created and facilitated by young 
people who have lived experience of mental health difficulties, family members of those 
who use the services, and mental health professionals from CAMHS, AMHS and and other mental health services. All aspects of the Discovery College take place in a relaxed peer supported environment where 
everyone is equal, and all contributions are respected. As the workshops promote group 
interaction and are experiential, participants learn not only from the facilitators, but also 
one another.​​

 

​For more information on Discovery College West's development and impact, click the link below to read the full report.