SEMH at BFS
Social Emotional And Mental Health
What is mental health?
“Mental health is a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realise their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community. It is an integral component of health and well-being that underpins our individual and collective abilities to make decisions, build relationships and shape the world we live in. Mental health is a basic human right. And it is crucial to personal, community and socio-economic development.” (World Health Organisation)
Most children grow up mentally healthy, but surveys suggest that more children and young people have problems with their mental health today than 30 years ago. It is thought that this is probably because of changes in the way that we live now and how this affects the experience of growing up.
In 2021 the department for education recommended that every school should have a Senior Lead for Mental Health (SLMH) in place by 2025.
Our Senior Lead for Mental Health is Miss Storey who completed the qualification in 2022. Mrs Carruthers and Mrs Paterson also lead in supporting mental health and wellbeing across the federation. Our nominated SEMH governor is Mrs Errington
Healthy Minds - Mental Health
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 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 and make choices. It also plays a part in your relationships with your family, community, colleagues and friends.
Good mental health among children and young people
When children and young people have good levels of wellbeing it helps them to:
- learn and explore the world
- feel, express and manage positive and negative emotions
- form and maintain good relationships with others
- cope with, and manage, change, setbacks and uncertainty
- develop and thrive
When children and young people look after their mental health and develop their coping skills it can help them to boost their resilience, self-esteem and confidence. It can also help them learn to manage their emotions, feel calm, and engage positively with their education - which can, in turn, improve their academic attainment.
What affects children and young people’s mental health?
A child or young person’s mental health will be influenced by many things over time and, because they all have different personalities, they will react and cope with challenging situations in different ways.
How we can support children and young people’s mental health?
Schools are the ideal environment to promote and support pupils’ mental health and wellbeing.
Most children and young people spend a significant amount of time in school and with their teachers, which means that school staff are in a good position to identify a child who may be struggling, and help refer them to get the support they need.
At Corbridge and Broomhaugh First Schools, we strive to help children develop social and emotional skills, providing them with the coping skills and tools they need to understand and manage their thoughts, feelings, behaviour, goals and relationships.
We do this through teaching health and wellbeing education (PSHE / RSE) to all children and weaving these topics and skills throughout the broader curriculum and school life. Health and wellbeing is not taught in isolation but reinforced throughout the curriculum and the time that the child or young person is in school. In addition we have a graduated approach to supporting groups/individuals and families who require over and above our core provision.
What are social and emotional skills?
Social and emotional skills help children and young people to:
- identify and manage their feelings and their behaviour, and reach out for help where necessary
- build and manage healthy relationships
- have self-control
- resolve conflict
- be self-aware
- handle and overcome difficulties
- make good decisions
- build resilience, self-esteem and confidence
- think positively about themselves and how they perceive the world around them
- recognise and prevent poor mental health
- grow into well-rounded and healthy adults.