Schools have a central role to play in enabling their pupils to be resilient and to support good mental health and wellbeing. At The Echelford Primary School we are passionate about developing a whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing. Our long-term aim is for this approach to be embedded within all layers of the school community.

What do we mean by mental health?

Good mental health isn’t just the absence of mental health problems such as depression or anxiety. Rather, it’s the presence of positive characteristics, such as being able to cope with life challenges, handle stress, build strong relationships and recover from setbacks.

It includes the way we feel about ourselves, the quality of our relationships, our ability to manage feelings and deal with difficulties and how much meaning and joy we derive from life.

At The Echelford Primary School we base our whole school approach to positive mental health and wellbeing on eight key areas.

· Leadership and management that supports and champions efforts to promote emotional health and wellbeing. Katie Willis - Senior Mental Health Lead.

· An ethos and environment that supports mental health and wellbeing, underpinned by our GREEN Values. 

· Curriculum teaching and learning to promote resilience, support social and emotional wellbeing and develop pupils’ knowledge about health and wellbeing.

· Enabling pupil voice to influence decisions, so they know that their voice is heard and valued and that they have some control over their lives.

· Staff development to support their own wellbeing and that of their pupils.

· Identifying need and monitoring impact of interventions.

· Proactive engagement with families to support  their wellbeing and that of their family life. 

· Targeted support and appropriate referral for those children and families who may need additional support.

How can I get help for me or my child?

If you have concerns and would like to speak to the Pastoral team about support available, targeted support or more specialist support, please contact the Home School Link Worker, Natasha Munro, or our Senior Mental Health Lead/Inclusion Lead, Katie Willis. 

The support available in school to promote mental health and wellbeing is shown below:

Key partnerships

We work closely with our local Mental Health Support Team. This support includes:

• Regular meetings between MHST and our Pastoral team, where possible referrals are discussed.

• Staff training

• Visible in school each week, often at the start of the day

• Attendance at our Parent Teacher Consultation evenings, Echelford Expo and Summer fair