Emotional well-being & mental health
At Park End Primary, we place the emotional wellbeing and mental health of our children at the heart of everything that we do. That is why we have developed a robust tiered response of support for our children, and our curriculum ensures that pupils are taught how to prioritise their own emotional wellbeing and mental health.
We understand that the primary years are a key time for children to develop their own identify and develop the knowledge and skills to grow into happy, healthy adults who go on to engage positively in society.
The pastoral care team
Park End has a pastoral care team, who are here to support children and families with their emotional well-being. If you have any worries or concerns about your child’s emotional well-being, please contact one of the staff below:
Assistant Headteacher, SENDCo
Assistant Headteacher, Designated Safeguarding Lead
Safeguarding and Pastoral Officer
Teacher, Deputy Social, Emotional and Mental Health Lead
Our tiered response to emotional wellbeing and mental health
As part of our commitment to promoting positive emotional wellbeing and mental health, we have developed a robust tiered response strategy. Our tiered system ensures children are signposted to the correct level of support when they require it.
External services who support us
In circumstances where a child needs additional support, other than what the school can provide, a referral can be made as part of our graduated approach detailed in our tiered response section. We work closely with a number of external services and charities who can support children, and their families, or in external venues.
Policies
To read our Emotional wellbeing and mental health policy, click here
Useful documents and websites
| Topic | View |
| Transforming Children & Young People’s Mental Health Provision | Download |
| Mind – To provide advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem. We campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding. | View |
| Bullying – Advice and support for children and young people experiencing bullying | View |
| CAHMS Resources – Resources to support mental health and wellbeing. | View |
| Childline – A counselling service for children and young people. | View |
| BBC Bitesize – PSHE and citizenship videos to help children’s understanding. | View |
| NCPCC’s Pantosaurus – A video to help children stay safe and keeping their private parts private. | View |
| NSPCC – Information and support for child abuse | View |
| Mind – Mental Wellbeing resources for young people. | View |
| Pop ‘n’ Olly – LGBT+ education for primary school | View |
| Young People’s Mental Health Resources | View |
| Every Mind Matters – NHS (www.nhs.uk) | View |
| Sleep hygiene in children and young people | View |
| Toolbox | Childline | View |
Understanding anxiety
Just like adults, children can experience times of worry and anxiety that can impact on their wellbeing. But what is anxiety? Essentially, anxiety is a natural response to a circumstance, or environment, that can present as a feeling of unease, worry or fear. Symptoms of anxiety can range from mild to severe.
Children of all ages can experience anxiety for a range of different reasons and it is important to understand that many of these worries are a normal part of growing up. However, when anxiety stops a child from enjoying their day to day life then it has become a problem and may need further intervention.
Understanding low mood and depression
Low mood often presents as tiredness, feeling sad, having low self esteem or angry outbursts. Low mood usually goes away after a few days or weeks and can often be improved by exercise, diet changes, sleep regulation, talking about problems or making other small changes.
Depression can be described as a low mood that does not go away after a few weeks, which is impacting your day to day life.
Low mood is often a common part of growing up as children learn how to navigate the world around them. This often goes away after a few weeks however when a low mood, negative feelings or concerns about depression impact your child’s life then we would recommend reaching out to your child’s class teacher, the pastoral team, the GP and making use of all of the resources on our website.
Understanding stress
Stress is a natural part of our lives. There will be many occasions our children face stressful situations, environments and emotions. Some stress is useful, we call this positive stress.
Sometimes, stress for a prolonged period of time, can be considered as tolerable or even toxic stress. It is essential therefore, that we equip our children with the necessary skills that they can draw on when they do face times of stress in their lives.
Proclaim: trauma informed school
As part of our dedicated, whole school approach to the improvement of social emotional mental health and wellbeing, all of our staff are Proclaim trained. This means that Park End Primary school is now a trauma informed school. Our staff have been fully trained in the early identification of children who require additional support with their mental health and wellbeing. This ensures that our children are supported in a way appropriate to their needs and circumstance, allowing them to develop their resilience and make the most of all of life’s opportunities.
For more information please watch the video below
