Mental Health and Wellbeing
Mental Wellbeing
At our school, we aim to promote positive mental health and well-being for our whole school community; pupils, staff, parents and carers, and recognise how important mental health and emotional well-being is to our lives in just the same way as physical health.
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 at St Philip’s 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
Talking Mental Health: https://youtu.be/nCrjevx3-Js
We offer different levels of support:
Universal Support - To meet the needs of all our pupils through our overall ethos and our wider curriculum. For instance, developing resilience for all.
Additional support - For those who may have short-term needs and those who may have been made vulnerable by life experiences such as bereavement.
Targeted support - For pupils who need more differentiated support and resources or specific targeted interventions such as wellbeing groups or personal mentors.
Lead staff members to contact if you are concerned about your child’s mental health: Mrs Squizzoni (Acting SENDCO), Mrs McCurdy (Acting Headteacher), Miss Shaddick (Acting Assistant Head, Mental Health Lead and DSL), Mr McCurdy (Acting Assistant Head and Deputy DSL) and Mrs Everest (ELSA – Emotional Literacy Support Assistant).
What do we currently do for mental health and wellbeing for our pupils and staff?
- We have a designated Mental Health and Well Being Lead in school that is responsible for promoting wellbeing for our staff and pupils (Miss Shaddick).
- We have a designated trained ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) , Mrs Everest, who delivers nurture groups for pupils, such as small group ‘time to talk’ social skills work, resilience skills, 'it’s good to be me' groups and 1:1 check in with pupils in liaison with our SENDCo (Special Needs & Disabilities Co-Ordinator)
- In each class we have worry boxes for pupils to share their worries with a safe adult.
- We have a whole school worry box that is checked daily by a member of SLT
- We have nominated school council members in each class to represent their peers and gain feedback in class assemblies.
- We have Wellbeing Champions who spot any children that may need some help
- We have an allocated buddy for all new pupils.
- We have a lunchtime drop ins for pupils to be able to chat/share their worries with an adult.
- We have a range of physical lunchtime clubs and quieter lunchtime areas to promote mental health and wellbeing and support for pupils who find busy lunchtimes stressful.
- We have mental health and wellbeing trained staff in order to support pupils with their needs.
- We have positive behaviour systems in place to promote positive social behaviour.
- We have mental health and wellbeing assemblies to promote resilience and self-management.
- We have a PSHE curriculum that helps pupils to build important life skills, such as learning to learn, habits of mind and the growth mindset.
- Our ethos is to promote supporting the development of skills and character traits such as perseverance, compassion and teamwork.
- We have a Mental Health and Wellbeing Policy for our school which is regularly updated.
- We include World Mental Health Day and Mental Health Awareness Week in the school calendar and plan activities for the whole school.
Positive Experiences
St Philip’s offers pupils many opportunities to do physical activities as well as opportunities to relax which both are ways to promote wellbeing and positive mental health.
- Lunch games to play outside
- Active Learning
- Home Learning Projects
- Themed Days
- Residential visits
- Educational day visits
- Before and after school clubs
- Extra-curricular clubs such as yoga and mindfulness
Celebrating Success
We like to celebrate our many successes together by:
- Displaying pupil’s work
- Celebration Award Assembly each week
- Photos of achievements on the website and our Facebook Page
- Class Assemblies
- School newsletters
- Dojo points and House points
- Learning Character Display
Mental Health Support Teams
We are currently living through extremely challenging times, and now perhaps more than ever, looking after our mental health and well-being is of paramount importance to us all.
What do I do if I am worried about my child's mental health or wellbeing?
You can:
Go to your GP as a first port of call as they are a useful place to gain medical support and signposting of local services, or speak to a School Nurse. Referrals for the School Nurse service can be made both through your GP and through school. https://www.healthforkids.co.uk/leicestershire/school-nurses/. Our School Nursing Team’s details are: North West Leicestershire Public Health (School) Nurse Team, Coalville Health Centre. Tel: 0116 215 3250
Talk to your child’s class teacher or teaching assistant about your child's needs or your concerns.
Talk to the school’s SENDCO (Mrs Squizzoni) or Designated Mental Health and Wellbeing lead Miss Shaddick).
The Education Psychology Service has a helpline for parents available daily 9 – 11.30. Tel: 0116 305 5100.
Young Minds - The Parents Helpline is available to offer advice to anyone worried about a child or young person under 25. You may have questions about a child’s behaviour, emotional well-being, or mental health condition. You may have a child who's already been admitted to CAMHS and have questions about their treatment or want to know what to say to your GP when you visit them. Call 0808 802 5544 or visit the website.
Early Help – children and family well-being service. Parents can make a referral for support from a Well-being Practitioner via the East Sussex Website.The Early Help team can provide help through groups such as Bounce Back (for children aged 8-13 children who are worried/anxious – low-level concerns) and through cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) interventions in order to help children manage and understand their anxiety. There is also a Parental Mental Health - group support for parents who have increasing anxieties around emotional, health and well-being.
Early Help Well-being Practitioners have been trained as part of the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) initiative. Well-being Practitioners are able to offer CBT based interventions to support children and young people experiencing common mental health difficulties.
Wellbeing Practitioners can work with children and young people (CYP) experiencing any of the following:
- Low mood
- Worry
- Generalized anxiety & social anxiety
- Panic
- Sleep problems due to anxiety/low-mood
- Simple phobias (excluding blood, needles and vomit)
- Stress management
For information and resources re: understanding and improving mental health and well-being, contact MIND.
Tel: 0300 123 3393 https://www.mind.org.uk/
NHS Resources
Here are a few simple ways you can encourage your child to express themselves. Could you build on existing interests or passions? Think about what has helped them get through the past year. A love of dancing? Baking? Drawing? Fashion? Encourage your child by
https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/- A public health England and NHS site to help people take simple steps to look after their mental health, improve their mental wellbeing and support others.
NHS Berkshire West and East Berkshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) have relaunched the mental health booklet – the Little Blue Book of Sunshine: Little Blue Book of Sunshine 2020.pdf.
The book offers lots of practical and useful advice and aims to help children and young people by sharing tips on how to deal with problems, such as anxiety, stress, relationships and anger. It also includes information about where to get help when they need it.
How to stay emotionally healthy