At West Felton CofE Primary School,  the mental health and wellbeing of our pupils, families and staff is paramount.

More than one in 10 primary school children aged five to 10 has an identifiable mental health condition – that’s around three children in every class.

While rates of mental ill health do increase as children get older, early intervention is key to giving young people the best start in life.

Primary schools have a vital role to play in supporting children’s mental health – teaching them the skills they need to recognise and deal with their emotions, and helping those with difficulties get the support they need.

What’s mental health?

We all have mental health. Your mental health affects how you feel, think and act. It refers to your emotional, psychological and social wellbeing. Your mental health can change on a daily basis and over time, and can be affected by a range of factors.

What’s wellbeing?

The World Health Organisation states that wellbeing is “a state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” Well-being can be defined as the combination of feeling good and functioning well; the experience of positive emotions such as happiness and contentment as well as the development of one’s potential, having some control over one’s life, having a sense of purpose, and experiencing positive relationships.

What do we do to support good mental health and wellbeing for our children and families?

Our school values; Kindness, Dignity, Aspiration and Community are deeply rooted in all we do. They form firm foundation for all of our children and families and provide the perfect background for cultivating good mental health and wellbeing.

Our rich and varied curriculum ensures that our children can cultivate their passions and recognise the benefits of academia and creativity on mental health and well-being.

PSHE (Personal Social Health Education) is held in high-esteem at West Felton, our Headteacher holds a PGCE in PSHE. It is taught weekly in every class. Our planning can be viewed on our PSHE page and our children’s work is shared on Seesaw regularly.

Our pupils know that they are the most important element of our school; that they will be listened too, they will be nurtured and actions needed will happen. This philosophy is firmly embedded in every class. In addition to this, we have a ‘Pupil Voice’ – this is a group of children from across the school, voted on by their peers. We meet half-termly to discuss any issues, listen to ideas and plan for the future.

We have a school ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Advisor) who is experienced and qualified to lead this superb intervention.  The ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) intervention was originally developed within Southampton, then Hampshire, by Sheila Burton, Educational Psychologist. It was designed to build the capacity of schools to support the emotional needs of their pupils from within their own resources. This is achieved by training teaching assistants to develop and deliver individualised support programmes to meet the emotional needs of children in their care. It recognises that children learn better and are happier if their emotional needs are addressed. This intervention is now widely implemented by educational psychologists across Britain. Our ELSA has already worked with over 30% of our school population. ELSA sessions take place weekly and are usually between 20 minutes and 1 hour. Sometimes, a short programme is appropriate e.g. 6 weeks, other times, a longer programme is more suitable. The possibility of a child receiving ELSA is always discussed with parents and often the parents choose to be supported through the process too.

We have a superb relationship with our local Mental Health Support Team. A member of the team visits the school regularly to discuss possible referrals and consequent actions. These can be counselling and therapy sessions for children and parents, workshop and group activities.

We have a team of mental health and wellbeing support workers across our federation, with two based at West Felton. They are on-hand on a daily basis to support with any crisis which may appear, they organise parent and family events, and generally provide the parents with a voice in a calm, non-threatening, supportive environment.

At West Felton, we use the Anna Freud Mentally Healthy School package to review of practices and develop them further.

https://www.annafreud.org/about-us/

 

What do we do to support good mental health and wellbeing for our staff?

We have recently adopted the DfE Mental Health and Wellbeing staff charter. All staff were consulted on the priorities and needs and we confidently fulfil each one:

• Prioritise staff mental health
• Give staff the support they need to take responsibility for their own and other people’s wellbeing
• Give managers access to the tools and resources they need to support the wellbeing of those they line manage
• Establish a clear communications policy
• Give staff a voice in decision-making
• Drive down unnecessary workload
• Champion flexible working and diversity
• Create a good behaviour culture
• Support staff to progress in their careers
• Hold ourselves accountable, including by measuring staff wellbeing

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/education-staff-wellbeing-charter

What is the impact?

Our children, families and staff feel safe and supported – termly surveys confirm this. They know that we are here to help them cope with the stresses and strains of modern life. Mental health and wellbeing is always prioritised. Our children can recognise and name emotions; they can describe the effect they have on their body physically and mentally; they have strategies to help them regulate their emotions and discuss their feelings; they know they matter. Consequently, our children are well-rounded, kind, empathetic humans, who can go confidently onto the next chapter in their lives well equipped for self-care and for the care of others.