Mental Health support in education - why it is so important?

Mental Health in schools is vital to enable the cognitive capacity for learning.

Staff in our schools have always been a valuable support network for some of the most vulnerable children in our communities, offering nurture, consistency and safety in what can be difficult and challenging family and community situations.

Today, with a continual pressure and reduction of mental health services, increasing socioeconomic difficulties, overwhelmed social services and relentless budget cuts, school staff are more than ever the first person that a child or young person may go to in times of mental health distress.

Despite that, most teachers in the UK have never received any training on mental health, and at a time when teachers are reporting persistently high rates of stress, anxiety, depression and burnout, surely there is no better time to look at how we can better equip school staff who are at the front line supporting our children.

In the face of tragedy, one young person who lost his 15 year old brother to suicide is petitioning the government to include standard education in mental health and child development as part of basic teacher training. You can read more about this campaign and sign the petition at the following link https://www.foreveryteacher.com/

The Anna Freud Centre also offers many free resources and information to support mentally healthy schools, here are just some examples, with even more on their website:

• Self-care summer toolkit (Primary and Secondary) https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/resources/self-care-summer-toolkit/

• Setting up peer support https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/resources/peer-support-for-mental-wellbeing-in-schools-and-colleges/

• Support for staff dealing with self-harm https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/resources/advice-and-support-for-staff-with-young-people-struggling-with-self-harm/

This is one of the reasons Youth Trauma Allies feel that it is vital to support the staff in schools to be able to feel more confident, informed and able to manage the everyday difficulties faced by the young people in their classrooms and around their schools. We offer training, signposting and resources to schools, as well as reflective practice spaces for school staff to come together and feel listened to and held, with the view to strengthen their well-being.

If you want to find out more about how we can help schools create mentally healthy environment, don’t hesitate to get in touch.