Setting up, delivering and evaluating a psycho-educational group for families and carers of young adults with first-episode psychosis.

First-episode psychosis (FEP) is a major mental illness characterised by abnormalities of thought and perception. Engaging the carers of young people experiencing FEP in family interventions may encourage them to better understand the condition. Setting up a pilot psycho-educational carers’ group was identified following the commissioning of an early intervention team. Twelve sessions were devised to meet the specific needs of the families. The overwhelming majority of people who attended found it useful, informative and accessible, and reduced their sense of ‘feeling alone with it all’.