Information for Support Group Co-Facilitators

Welcome to the information page for Support Group Co-Facilitators. All the details and documents you need are stored on here.

Need to message your group?

Each individual support group has (or will have) its own dedicated space on our Online Community where you can share updates with your group members. 

Online Community 


If your support group doesn’t have its own dedicated space yet (we are in the process of uploading them), you need to log in here

If you’re still communicating with your group via email, you may find these documents helpful:

  • Support group email guide
  • What to do if there’s a data breach
  • Data protection and GDPR Q&A

Need the Code of Conduct? 

To ensure the confidentiality and safeguarding of everyone in the Peer Support Group, anyone who attends a meeting, whether in person or online, agrees to follow the Bipolar UK Code of Conduct. 

You can find a link to the Support Group Code of Conduct here

Need to fill in a group attendance report? 

We ask all our co-facilitators to complete an attendance report after each session. This helps us to:

  1. Understand how many people are going to the groups, and whether they are people living with bipolar, first-time attendees, friends or family members, or trained volunteers. This helps us to track engagement and identify trends across different regions and formats (comparing online to in-person attendance, for example). 
  2. Report accurate attendance data to funders to support grant applications.
  3. Keep track of what topics were discussed and whether the Code of Conduct was read out. This supports safeguarding and helps identify areas where additional training or support may be needed.
  4. Maintain data protection standards by following GDPR and safeguarding protocols.

If you’d like a reminder of how to fill in the form, you can watch this video here

 Fill in a group attendance report

Got any questions about our groups?

We’ve put together a Q&A about our support groups here

Got a safeguarding issue? 

If someone needs urgent help or you’re worried:

  1. Contact emergency services on 999, and ask for police and ambulance. You can see a full list of our crisis support options here
  2. If you have an urgent safeguarding concern, please contact our Safeguarding Lead, Rosie Phillips: email on rphillips@bipolaruk.org or call 07584 677003.
  3. Report all safeguarding concerns by sending an email with details to supportgroups@bipolaruk.org. One of the team will get back to you.

Need to sign the Support Group Agreement?  

We ask all our new co-facilitators to sign a Support Group Agreement Form. If you haven’t already done so, please sign it here

Looking for the Volunteer Expenses Form?

If you have pre-agreed expenses to claim, please fill in this Volunteer Expenses Form and email it to supportgroups@bipolaruk.org

Want to refresh your facilitation skills?

If you’re co-facilitating a Bipolar UK Support Group meeting – either in person or online – here are our tips for guiding a group and managing difficult situations.

1. Plan ahead

Before the start-time of a meeting, we recommend setting aside at least ten minutes to make a plan with the other co-facilitators. 

This will give you time to delegate tasks, discuss an agenda, and prepare any documents or website pages you’re planning to share.

2. Share tasks

Tasks the co-facilitators need to share between them include: 

  • Managing the chat function (online groups)
  • Changing attendee names if they sign in with their full names (online groups)
  • Reading the Code of Conduct
  • Leading the discussion 
  • Appointing a group safeguarding lead
  • Deciding who will fill out the attendance report after the meeting

3. Follow a simple agenda 

  • If it’s an online meeting, admit all the attendees. If it’s an in-person meeting, ask everybody to gather in a circle. 
  • Start with a friendly welcome where the co-facilitators introduce themselves – usually they share their first name and diagnosis, or name and relationship to loved one with bipolar. They might also mention how long they’ve been a volunteer with Bipolar UK.
  • Invite all attendees to introduce themselves with their first name and reason for attending.
  • Some groups like to use our Mood Scale to share how they’re feeling in the meeting.
  • Read the Code of Conduct.
  • Let the discussion flow naturally, or introduce a pre-agreed topic.
  • Five or ten minutes before the end of a meeting, it works well to do a ‘check-out’ so that people aren’t talking about difficult issues just before they leave. You can ask people how they found the group or if they are looking forward to anything.
  • Remind people that Bipolar UK’s support services are free and open to anyone affected by bipolar.

4. Deal with challenging situations 

There’s no right or wrong way to manage a difficult situation as everyone is so different, but here are some tips you might find helpful.

If someone’s talking too much

Gently explain that the group is a shared space, and that it’s important for everyone to have time to speak.

  • If you think it’s helpful, you can mention that our Code of Conduct states we should listen to each other and allow others to speak.
  • If the behaviour continues, you can say something to the person directly, such as, ‘I’ve noticed that you’re talking across others…’ 
  • If the behaviour continues, you can say something like, ‘I’ve already told you threetimes, but you are still talking over people. Please can you take time to listen to others, otherwise I may need to mute you/ask you to leave.’
  • If you’re worried, raise a safeguarding concern.

If someone behaves aggressively or inappropriately 

  • If someone behaves aggressively or inappropriately, you must address the situation immediately by calmly asking them to stop whatever they’re doing.
  • If the behaviour continues in an online group, you may need to mute them or removethem from the meeting. 
  • If the behaviour continues in an in-person group, you may need to ask the participant to leave or, if necessary, call security or the police. 
  • If you’re worried, raise a safeguarding concern.

If someone’s really low

  • If someone arrives at a meeting who’s very low in mood, the most important thing is for you to remain calm.
  • If someone gets emotional, think about how you would like to be treated. Reassure them by saying something like, ‘It’s okay to cry and release your emotions. This is a safe space. Turn off your camera or take some time away if that’s what you need.’
  • If someone talks about having suicidal thoughts, remember that there’s clear evidence that talking about suicide does not increase the risk. You might say something like, ‘Have you spoken to a doctor, CMHT, care co-ordinator, CPN, about how you’re feeling?’ or ‘Who’s in your support network? Have you spoken to them?’ 
  • Signpost them to our suicide prevention resources and raise a safeguarding concern if you’re worried.

5. Make time to debrief 

If a group has been particularly difficult you may want to hold a meeting with the other co-facilitators afterwards to talk through the issues, reflect on how you’re feeling and plan any follow-up steps. 

Some group co-facilitators choose to hold a debrief after every meeting.

You are also welcome to:

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