Developed in consultation with the Department for Education (DfE), Mental health and wellbeing in primary schools – preparing for recovery has been launched by the National Children's Bureau's Schools Well-Being Partnership.
The toolkit builds upon the eight principles set out in Public Health England’s guidance, Promoting children and young people’s emotional health and well-being: a whole school and college approach, and shows how schools can promote and support mental well-being through all aspects of school life.
It comes as the DfE launched an £8m grant yesterday to support pupil's mental health in schools and colleges. The Well-being for Education Return programme aims to help schools respond to the 'additional pressures pupils may be feeling, as well as to any emotional response they or their teachers may still be experiencing from bereavement, stress, trauma or anxiety of the past months.'
The NCB toolkit is structured around key principles that help embed well-being holistically across school settings, including leadership, environment and culture, curriculum, student voice, staff development and identifying need.
It includes practice examples, signposting to training for schools and teachers and resources for further support to help schools plan and prepare for pupils to return and rebuild the school community. It also gives illustrative examples that show activities which have been found to be effective across different settings.
For example, a south London primary school has two children in the same year group who have both experienced the recent death of a parent. The children have been encouraged to talk to one another, and to access support from their teaching assistant. As the children and their families are currently managing well, the school are using the local Candle child bereavement service for consultation and advice, but staff know to make a referral if difficulties emerge.
The National Children’s Bureau co-ordinates the Schools’ Well-being Partnership: a national network of nearly 50 member organisations from the education, health and well-being, and children’s sectors. The Partnership works to improve the well-being of all children in education.
- The toolkit is available to download here
