Mental Health and Wellbeing
‘Mental health is a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realise their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community.’
World Health Organisation (WHO)
In an ever-changing world, positive mental health is vital to everyone’s well-being and quality of life. It allows us to respond effectively to the challenges that daily life brings. At SS John and Monica Catholic Primary School, we are passionate about making a difference in the lives of young people. We seek to ensure that every community member can believe and achieve by working together. We are all aware that mental health is crucial in believing and achieving, and we are committed to ensuring that an ethos of positive mental health and well-being is at the heart of all we do.
Our school is committed to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of all pupils. Internally, support is available through our Senior Mental Health Lead, who works closely with staff, pupils, and families to provide guidance and early intervention where needed. Where additional support is required, we work with a range of external services. These include NHS-funded provision such as Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in schools, as well as local organisations and charities. In our area, specialist support is provided through Forward Thinking Birmingham, part of the wider NHS children and young people’s mental health services (often referred to as CAMHS). These services offer more targeted support for children and young people experiencing emotional or mental health difficulties. We encourage parents and carers to contact the school if they have any concerns so we can help identify the most appropriate support.
Aims and Objectives
- To have a whole school approach to promoting positive mental health and wellbeing
- To ensure that, through the promotion of positive mental health and well-being, our children are helped to understand and express their feelings, build their confidence and emotional resilience and, therefore, their capacity to learn and achieve
- To increase awareness of mental health and wellbeing among staff and develop an understanding that we are all responsible for playing a part in establishing a supportive environment
- To increase the awareness and understanding and reduce stigma amongst children, staff and our wider community of issues involving the mental health and well-being of young people and to provide support at an early stage to any child who is or appears to be suffering from mental health issues.
- To ensure that, embedded within our curriculum, we enable our children to become healthy, independent, responsible, and confident members of society. Children will understand how they develop personally and socially, and many of the moral, social and cultural issues that are part of growing up will be discussed. They will be provided opportunities across the curriculum to learn about rights and responsibilities and appreciate what it means to live and thrive as part of a diverse and tolerant society.
The Senior Mental Health Lead is Mrs M.Elliott.
Link to Forward Thinking Birmingham:
Please look at our 'Pupil Mental Health and Well-Being Policy' below for more information.