Mental Health & Wellbeing

At St. Austin’s Catholic Primary School, we are committed to supporting the emotional health and wellbeing of our pupils and staff.

We all have mental health. Your mental health affects how you feel, think and act. It refers to your emotional, psychological and social wellbeing. Your mental health can change and fluctuate on a daily basis and over time, and can be affected by a range of factors. It’s important to look after your mental health, as you would look after your physical health. Your state of wellbeing affects how you cope with stress, relate to others, make choices, and play a part in your family, community, workplace and among your friends.

We know that everyone experiences life challenges that can make us vulnerable and at times, anyone may need additional emotional support. We take the view that positive mental health is everybody’s business and that we all have a role to play.

At our school we:mental-wellbeing

  • help children to understand their emotions and feelings better
  • help children feel comfortable sharing any concerns or worries
  • help children socially to form and maintain relationships
  • promote self esteem and ensure children know that they count
  • encourage children to be confident and ‘dare to be different’
  • help children to develop emotional resilience and to manage setbacks

We offer different levels of support:

  • Universal Support– To meet the needs of all our pupils through our overall ethos and our wider curriculum. For instance developing resilience for all.
  • Additional support– For those who may have short term needs and those who may have been made vulnerable by life experiences such as bereavement.
  • Targeted support– For pupils who need more differentiated support and resources or specific targeted interventions such as wellbeing groups or personal mentors.

Our Offer

As well as a whole-school approach, our school offers support through targeted approaches for individual pupils or groups of pupils which may include:

  • On site learning mentor, Mr. Laurie.
  • Circle time approaches or ‘circle of friends’ activities.
  • Targeted use of PSHE resources.
  • Managing feelings resources e.g. ‘time to talk boxes’
  • Managing emotions resources
  • Primary Group Work/Mental health and wellbeing groups
  • Pastoral support groups.
  • Therapeutic activities including art, Lego and relaxation and mindfulness techniques.
  • CBT Programmes with Collins-Donnelly Consultancy.
  • Mr. Kim Holden, our councillor, visits us once a week to work with some of our children. He was a social worker in a previous life and has worked with children from all sorts of backgrounds. He is skilled at giving children a safe and nurturing environment where they feel able to talk.
  • Catholic Care- We have access to the Catholic Care Service.

We also work with local services such as CAMHS, Wakefield 0-19 Service & Wakefield Families Together.

We follow the Wakefield’s Continuum of Need.

Wakefield Support and Services

 

National Resources

These resources are from trusted national agencies and helplines, and can provide online, phone or in person support when required.

 

NSPCC – Child mental health

This helpful resource can be used by parents or professionals to understand how to recognise and respond to any mental health concerns you may have about your child. It is an in-depth guide, and provides a helpful overview of the signposts of mental ill-health in children.

NSPCC – Child mental health

 

Other Useful Links: