Mental Health and Well-being
Mental health and Well-being
What is Mental Health?
‘Mental Health is defined as a state of well-being in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community (World Health Organisation, 2019).
At Holy Family school we recognise that educational attainment and a child’s mental wellbeing go hand in hand and we are committed to adopting a whole-school approach to promote positive emotional wellbeing, amongst both children and staff. As a staff team, we have recently undergone training to become Mental Health first aiders and to gain a greater understanding around mental health and wellbeing. Positive mental health learning also features highly in all areas of the curriculum. Through a carefully planned approach to PSHE our pupils are helped to acquire the knowledge and develop the skills and understanding they need to lead confident, healthy and independent lives and to become resilient, informed and responsible citizens.
In addition, whole school events, such as World Mental Health day in October and extra curricular clubs such as Mindfulness Club enable children to gain a better understanding of issues and focus on strategies for dealing with anxiety and coping strategies.
Looking after our Emotional wellbeing and mental health.
What do we do at Holy Family school to support children’s emotional well-being and mental health?
- Holy Family is committed to creating a happy, caring and supportive environment. As well as a learning environment, the school ensures there is a positive, supportive and inclusive ethos where children can thrive and achieve their personal best.
- Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) is a central to the curriculum across the whole school. PSHE assists pupils to cope with the many changes childhood brings and introduces them to a wider world, manage transitions and enables them to make an active contribution to their communities. The concepts covered in PSHE include identity, managing feelings and emotions, relationships, change, resilience and being healthy, which includes physical, emotional and social well-being.
- Within the National Curriculum, every child has a minimum of two hours of physical education each week. There is also an array of sport-related after-school club sctivities, for children to attend.
- To support children’s social and emotional development, and their well-being we offer an extensive range of extra curricular clubs - all with a view to increasing the range of experiences that children have, enabling them to make informed choices for adult life. Activities are designed to be fun and cater for a wide variety of interests. Such clubs include a mindfulness and relaxation club and yoga club aimed at equipping children with coping strategies and relaxation techniques.
- We include World Mental Health Day in the school calendar and plan activities for the whole school community.
- The school is committed to gaining a fuller understanding of mental health and supporting the needs of our children.
- The majority of staff have acquired training in mental health and well-being and are Mental Health First Aiders. As a school we are also committed to continuing to develop our practise in the area of mental health and well-being.
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