Family members’ perspectives on the acceptability and impact of a co-facilitated information programme: the EOLAS mental health programme Agnes Higgins 1, * , Carmel Downes 1 , Mark Monahan 1 , David Hevey 2 , Fiona Boyd 3 , Ned Cusack 4 and Patrick Gibbons 4 1 School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland 2 School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland 3 Kildare Youth Services, Kildare, Ireland 4 Celbridge Adult Mental Health Services, Kildare, Ireland Background: Despite the critical role families play in the care and recovery journeys of people who experience enduring mental distress, they are often excluded by the mental health services in the care and decision-making process. International trends in mental health services emphasise promoting a partnership approach between service users, families and practitioners within an ethos of recovery. Objective: This paper evaluated the acceptability of and initial outcomes from a clinician and peer co-led family information programme. Methods: A sequential design was used involving a pre-post survey to assess changes in knowledge, confidence, advocacy, recovery and hope following programme participation and interviews with programme participants. Participants were recruited from mental health services running the information programme. In all, 86 participants completed both pre- and post-surveys, and 15 individuals consented to interviews. Results: Survey findings indicated a statistically significant change in family members’ knowledge about mental health issues, recovery attitudes, sense of hope and confidence. In addition, the interviews suggested that the programme had a number of other positive outcomes for family members, including increased communication with members of the mental health team and increased awareness of communication patterns within the family unit. Family members valued the opportunity to share their experiences in a ‘safe’ place, learn from each other and provide mutual support. Conclusion: The evaluation highlights the importance of developing information programmes in collaboration with family members as well as the strength of a programme that is jointly facilitated by a family member and clinician. Received 05 February 2019; Revised 16 May 2019; Accepted 01 August 2019 Key words: Psychoeducation, recovery, co-facilitation, peer facilitation, evaluation. Introduction Recovery-oriented services are the gold standard to which mental health services currently aspire. Although there are many different definitions of recovery, there is general consensus that recovery refers to an approach that promotes an individual’s resourcefulness, autonomy, positive sense of self and belief in their ability to live a meaningful life (McCabe et al. 2018). A core principle underpinning the recovery approach is equal partnership between all stakeholders in the planning, delivery and evalu- ation of mental health services (Keogh et al. 2014). Although historically family members have felt excluded by mental health service providers, in more recent times, national and international mental health policies emphasise the pivotal role of families in recovery-oriented services (e.g. Department of Health and Children, 2006; Mental Health Commission, 2007; World Health Organization, 2010; International Mental Health Collaborating Network Charter, 2013). Best practice guidance acknowledges the importance of building family members’ capacity to impact posi- tively on people who experience severe mental distress (NICE, 2009; Schiffman et al. 2015; Health Service Executive, 2017). While recovery for service users entails a degree of autonomy and connection with self (Kartalova- O’Doherty et al. 2012), connectedness with others is an integral part of the recovery process (Slade, 2009; Gehart, 2012). Harnessing positive aspects from the *Address for correspondence: A. Higgins PhD, School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland. (Email: ahiggins@ tcd.ie) Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine, page 1 of 10. © College of Psychiatrists of Ireland 2019 ORIGINAL RESEARCH doi:10.1017/ipm.2019.37