Supporting Children's Mental Health
We are committed to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of our pupils and supporting their families to find good quality support and information. Hillside Infant School have set up a group with other local schools to develop our ability to respond and cater for a range of needs.
Please keep an eye on this page as we will share some top tips, good resources and organisations linked to developing positive mental health.
At Hillside Infant School positive mental health is important for all, more information can be found below:
Supporting Positive Mental Health
It is very important that we support children and young people as they grow and develop – not only with their learning, but also to help them to understand their own feelings and emotions.
In school, the ‘taught’ element will be delivered through assemblies and Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) however there are incidental opportunities to increase resilience in every lesson. This can be done by reducing the fear of failure and rewarding children for effort. It is important that children develop a sense of worth and value and so adults will respond positively when they recognise that a child has taken a risk in their learning or social relationships.
All staff are encouraged to listen to children and allow them to express how they feel. We understand that not all children can regulate their emotions or make sense of their experiences. We can offer more intensive support if needed and have a great range of resources that we can share with you and your child. We have books, activities and stories that can help children discuss and understand that some of their feelings are normal. Please do pop in and ask to see what we have.
Our Pastoral Care Lead Natalie Pugh is a Metal Health First Aider, holds level 2 in understanding mental health and mental health advocacy in the workplace, as well as a number of courses in supporting children with their emotions, anxiety, self-esteem, trauma and loss. She also holds a certificate in Therapeutic Play and studied at the Institute of Arts in Therapy and education, this enables her to work effectively with children that need Therapeutic support.
We can also ask for advice and support from the school nursing team and the Child, Adolescent and Mental Health team. The following websites have good advice.
If you are worried about your child or want to find out more about how we can help, please contact Natalie Pugh – Pastoral care lead by phone or email npugh@hillsideinfant.org.uk
Parents and Carers are welcome to come into school and feel free to browse through our resources. Examples of these are below:
