Mental Health and Wellbeing

At All Saints’ School we believe that children’s emotional and mental health is equally as important as their physical health. It is our aim to equip all our children with understanding, knowledge and tools to look after their emotional health. We all nurture this important aspect of our children’s development, from Foundation Stage through to Year 6.

Super Saints’ Emotional Support

We are lucky to have some fantastic mental health ambassadors at our school who facilitate wonderful activities for our children to support wellbeing and mental health.

Mrs Barker runs Forest School sessions throughout the year. All classes get the opportunity to spend time outside exploring nature, working collaboratively and most importantly looking after their mental wellbeing. The children love these sessions and the benefits it has for the children are extremely apparent.

In addition to this, we run two groups for children who may benefit: ‘Understanding our Emotions’ and ‘Anxiety and Worry’. These workshops have been devised carefully and are tailored specifically for children. Each group is full of fun activities to help them learn more about their thoughts, feelings and behaviours whilst equipping and empowering them with tools to manage big emotions.

Miss Gilroy leads our ARTiculate support programme. ARTiculate is a way of supporting children through art. The approach has been designed to support learning and to be a safe, supportive environment for the child where they are listened to and their views, feelings and art expressions are welcomed and respected. The sessions encourage imagination and creativity whilst also potentially helping to lower anxiety, support relationship building, increasing self-esteem and confidence as well as helping children understand and manage their feelings. ARTiculate is not Art Therapy but is the therapeutic use of art adapted to support emotional literacy, endorsed by BAAT – The British Association of Art Therapists.

If a teacher considers that these approaches may help a child, the parent will be consulted and a consent form will be sent home to be signed. The child usually has around 6 sessions either 1-1 or in small groups.

Mrs Quinlan is our Senior Mental Health Lead. She oversees a whole-school approach towards promoting positive mental wellbeing amongst pupils and staff. She coordinates the mental health needs of our children and manages the delivery of interventions.

Mrs Quinlan works alongside children and their families to ensure we provide the most appropriate support for each individual. She also supports staff, providing them with the confidence and skills required, to work with children with mental health needs.

What should I do if I am concerned about my child’s mental health or well-being?

Talk to us!

At All Saints’, we have systems in place to identify possible mental health and wellbeing concerns. Our aim is to create a safe and supportive environment for children in which they feel confident to articulate their worries and ultimately prevent any further mental health issues developing.

If you have any queries or concerns about your child’s mental health or the provision in school, please do not hesitate to get in touch by contacting your child’s class teacher via the school office.

Useful websites

GR8 Minds

GR8 Minds provides counselling services for children and young people. Parent’s can refer their child directly from this page. Children’s counselling can help with the following:

a mental health condition, such as depression, anxiety or an eating disorder
an upsetting physical health condition
a difficult life event, such as a bereavement, a relationship breakdown or problems at school
difficult emotions – for example, low self-esteem or anger
other issues, such as sexual identity

All Saints' C of E Primary School

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