Mental Health and Wellbeing
At our school, we take mental health and wellbeing very seriously and we are committed to supporting the emotional health and wellbeing of all our staff, pupils and their parents/carers. We know that everyone experiences life challenges that can make us vulnerable and at times, anyone may need additional emotional support. We take the view that positive mental health is everybody’s business and that we all have a role to play.
At our school we:
Help children to understand their emotions and feelings better
Help children feel comfortable sharing any concerns or worries
Help children socially to form and maintain relationships
Promote self-esteem and ensure children know that they count
Encourage children to be confident and ‘dare to be different’
Help children to develop emotional resilience and to manage setbacks
We all have times when we have low Mental Wellbeing, where we feel stressed, upset or find it difficult to cope.
There are some common life events that may affect you or your child’s Mental Wellbeing:
Loss or bereavement, Loneliness,
Issues at school.
Worries about money.
Everyone deserves to feel good and there are steps you or your child can take to maintain and improve your Mental Wellbeing:
Build positive relationships.
Take time for yourself.
Look after your mental health.
Look after your physical health.
What can you or your child do to gain Mental Wellbeing?
Be open and talk about your feelings with friends/family/colleagues and/or your GP.
Associate yourself with positive people.
Speak to a member of staff at school – Our Mental Health First Aiders are Becky Albentosa, Ruthi Thompson, Suzanne Harrison, Suzanne Louch, Lisa Barker and Rebecca Oxley
Get physically active (a Health body and mind are closely linked).
There are some simple ways to help yourself manage your own well-being day to day in the form of ‘five ways to well-being.’
This important message gives us permission to take time for ourselves and be in the moment and focusses on the positives. This is similar to mindfulness. If you can try to follow these 5 ways throughout your daily life, you will find it much easier to cope with stress.
Children can also follow the 5 ways to well-being. This will give them long lasting skills to grow with them through adulthood to hopefully reduce the risk of them developing mental health issues.
Here are some websites designed specifically for children and young adults.
A website for children and young people. There are different sections offering information and advice on signs and symptoms, seeking help and looking after yourself. Some handy advice for parents too.
The following websites have been vetted and approved by the NHS. We recommend that parents always look at and test out apps and games for themselves before introducing their children to them:
- Positive Penguins – https://positivepenguins.com/
Aimed at 8 – 12 year olds. This app helps children to understand their feelings and challenge negative thinking. Four positive penguins take children on a journey to help them better understand the relationship between what they think and what they feel.
Emotional Wellbeing Support App for Children (P) Created by Parent Zone, Ollee is a digital friend for children aged 8 to 11. The app has been funded by BBC Children in Need’s ‘A Million & Me’ initiative, which aims to make a difference to children’s emotional wellbeing. Ollee aims to help children reflect on how they feel and to process their experiences with the support and help of their parents and carers.
- Kooth – https://www.kooth.com/
Kooth offers emotional and mental health support for children and young people aged between 11 – 24 years and is available up to 10 pm every day.
Whilst prioritising the wellbeing of their children, parents often forget to prioritise themselves. It is important that you make sure that you still look after your own physical and mental wellbeing at this time too, so we have also put together a few contacts that might be useful if you feel that you would like some further support with your mental health or wellbeing too.
Here are some websites aimed at adults, dedicated to supporting Mental Health and Wellbeing.
They contain lots of good advice and a series of free, downloadable books on a range of topics including anxiety, stress, the workplace, self harm, mindfulness and exercise.
- Mental Health Foundation – https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/a-to-z
The Mental Health Foundation website has a useful A-Z of key mental Health topics:
- Mind – https://www.mind.org.uk/
Mind are a leading mental health charity and they have bases in both Bradford and Leeds. They can offer you support with mental health.
- Sharing Voices Bradford – https://sharingvoices.net/
Sharing Voices is a Bradford based charity who offer support with mental health. They can provide support in a range of languages, including English, Polish, Bengali, Gujerati and Urdu and are currently offering free counselling and one to one support on the phone. Call them on 01274 947300
The NHS website is a useful place to find out about all kinds of illnesses, Including mental health problems.
- Mind Ed – https://mindedforfamilies.org.uk/#/
Mind Ed for Families is a site developed by Health Education England and The Department of Education to help families understand and support their children, from parenting tips to getting help in a crisis.
- Headspace – https://www.headspace.com/?gclid=CjwKCAjw_o-HBhAsEiwANqYhp2L8k0FzV_mg0iYF0Sc9Fxhe9J_N02No3PGocxcIXLqxJPpSqoU4ahoCGLIQAvD_BwE
Headspace has some useful audio and video clips about different conditions and people’s experiences, as well as some mimindfulnes.
Family Lives offers a confidential and free* helpline service for families in England and Wales (previously known as Parentline).
- Gingerbread – https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/resources/gingerbread-for-single-parents/?page=1&IssuePageId=1301
Gingerbread offer a free helpline for single parents.
- My Wellbeing College – https://bmywellbeingcollege.nhs.uk/
My Wellbeing College is a free NHS service to help people manage everyday problems such as feeling low, having problems sleeping, feeling anxious and experiencing stress.
The Silent Solution –
Tel: 999 and if it’s not safe to respond to the operator when they ask what service you want, stay connected. If the operator hears any suspicious noise, you will be transferred to the police. If nothing is heard, you may be asked to press 55 – this will connect you to a Police call handler. Listen carefully to their questions and instructions so that they can assess your situation and arrange for assistance. This system means that the Police can respond to genuine emergencies’ when people are in danger.
Reporting Domestic Abuse
West Yorkshire Police have created a simple online form to enable people to report domestic abuse directly to them and as an alternative to speaking on the phone.
The information people provide on the form will be dealt with in the same way as any other report of domestic abuse.