Why mental health and wellbeing is important
At our school, we aim to promote positive mental health and wellbeing for our whole school community; pupils, staff, parents and carers, and recognise how important mental health and emotional wellbeing is to our lives in just the same way as physical health.
We recognise that children’s mental health is a crucial factor in their overall wellbeing and can affect their learning and achievement. All children go through ups and downs through their school career/life and some face significant life events. About 1 in 10 children aged 5 to 16 have a diagnosable mental health need and these can have an enormous impact on their quality of life, relationships and academic achievement. In many cases it is life-limiting.
The Department for Education (DfE) recognises that: “in order to help their pupils succeed; schools have a role to play in supporting them to be resilient and mentally healthy”.
Schools can be a place for children and young people to experience a nurturing and supportive environment that has the potential to develop self-esteem and give positive experiences for overcoming adversity and building resilience. For some, school will be a place of respite from difficult home lives and offer positive role models and relationships, which are critical in promoting pupils wellbeing and can help engender a sense of belonging and community.
Our role in school is to ensure that they are able to manage times of change and stress, be resilient, are supported to reach their potential and access help when they need it. We also have a role to ensure that pupils learn about what they can do to maintain positive mental health, what affects their mental health, how they can help reduce the stigma surrounding mental health issues and where they can go if they need help and support.
Our aim is to help develop the protective factors which build resilience to mental health problems and be a school where
- All pupils are valued
- Pupils have a sense of belonging and feel safe
- Pupils feel able to talk openly with trusted adults about their problems without feeling any stigma
- Positive mental health is promoted and valued
- Bullying is not tolerated
In addition to children’s wellbeing, we recognise the importance of promoting staff mental health and wellbeing.
For more information of how we support all with their mental health see our school policy.
If you’re looking for good resources to support this…
https://www.childline.org.uk/toolbox/calm-zone/
https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/resources/
https://www.place2be.org.uk/our-services/parents-and-carers/supporting-your-childs-mental-health/
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/for-children-and-young-people/
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/children-young-people-and-families