At St Aldhelm’s Church School, we aim to promote positive mental health and wellbeing for our whole school community (children, staff, parents and carers).  We recognise how important mental health and emotional wellbeing is to our lives in just the same way as physical health.  Children’s mental health is a crucial factor in their overall wellbeing and can affect their learning and achievement. 

Our Wellbeing Action Group

We have an active Wellbeing Action Group that started in November 2022.  Our child leaders, with the help of Mrs Newman (Mental Health Lead), have carried out a fantastic job raising awareness around mental health, fundraising for wellbeing events and looking ahead to future projects.  In order to share their messages and updates, they have a display board in the school's central corridor.  They meet regularly to plan, discuss and carry out their latest initiatives.  We hope this year to invite parents to join our Wellbeing Action Group.

 

The group's main project has been to create a well-being sensory garden for the whole school.  We have been fortunate to have the support from John Wainwright & Co. Ltd. who gifted us four lorry loads of stone, as well as some of their workers to move it and create the paths and areas you see in the pictures.  We have also been successful with Tesco's blue tokens.  The group will now be deciding how best to spend these funds.

The next step for the group is to work with EtaVoni Automation Excellence, who are creating a range of the group's designs (see below).  We are all very excited about this next phase.

Supporting Mental Health and Wellbeing

       

We at St Aldhelm’s are a Mental Health Support Team (MHST) school. This means we are committed to building a mentally healthy school environment, helping all members of the school community to feel confident, resilient and independent around their mental wellbeing.

MHSTs were established nationally to improve children and young people’s early access to mental health and wellbeing services by providing support in schools. They work with children and young people experiencing mild to moderate mental health difficulties.

Within Somerset, the MHST is a jointly delivered service between Young Somerset and Somerset Foundation Trust CAMHS. It is also supported by Public Health England and the Education Psychology service. MHST staff work in collaboration with the Senior Mental Health Lead (Claire Newman) at our school (St Aldhelm’s Church School). 

The three core functions of the MHST are:

1. To provide evidence-based Low Intensity Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (LICBT) interventions for mild to moderate mental health and wellbeing needs to children and young people.
2. To support the Mental Health Lead in each MHST school to introduce or develop a whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing.
3. To give timely advice and signposting to schools, and to liaise with external agencies, ensuring that children and young people and their families receive the right support at the right time.

LICBT support may be face-to-face or virtual, may involve working with parents or in a group, and will typically involve an assessment and 6-8 weekly sessions. These interventions are highly structured and delivered by mental health practitioners, who receive regular supervision with clinical supervisors.

If you would like to find out more, please speak to the Senior Mental Health Lead (Claire Newman).

For more information about the MHST please visit: www.youngsomerset.org.uk/mhst or www.somersetft.nhs.uk/camhs/mental-health-support-in-schools-mhst/

Who are Somerset’s Mental Health Support Team?

https://youtu.be/oOmKroBTT_0?si=dPgEduQeE8bJcv7X

Click on the image below to be taken to the Mental Health Support Team's Padlet.  Here you can find and explore links and resources to support you and your child further.

 

Who else can support?

You may find the support that the School Nursing Team can offer helpful at this time.  They are available to support parents with a range of advice and strategies.  More information is on the poster below.

 

                                  

Somerset Big Tent is a great place to find the right wellbeing support.  Please visit the website and explore the amazing resources and contacts.  Click on the picture below.