Mental Health at Brooklands Farm
At Brooklands Farm we aim to promote positive mental health and wellbeing for our whole school community (children, staff, parents and carers). It is important we recognise how important mental health and emotional wellbeing is to our lives in just the same way as physical health.
We recognise that children’s mental health is a crucial factor in their overall wellbeing and can affect their learning and achievement. The Department for Education (DfE) recognises that: “in order to help their children succeed; schools have a role to play in supporting them to be resilient and mentally healthy”. The mental health of children and young people, adults in schools, parents and carers and the wider whole school community will impact on all areas of development, learning, achievement and experiences.
At Brooklands Farm we aim to support our children in a nurturing and supportive environment where they can have positive experiences to allow them to become strong and powerful individuals. All our staff are committed to building positive relationships with children as well as acting as role models. Our school role is to ensure that children are equipped with the skills and resilience to overcome barriers, change, times of stress and know how to seek support when they need it. It is our role to ensure children learn about how to identify and maintain positive mental health, know what affects their mental health and know where to seek support if need be.
Our objectives
- To promote positive mental health and wellbeing for our whole school community (children, staff, parents and carers).
- To support the whole school community to recognise the importance of their mental health as well as their physical health
- To equip children with the skills and resilience to identify their own well being, overcome barriers which may stop this and know how to seek support when they need it
- To providing a safe, stimulating learning environment that meets the needs of all pupils so they can become strong and powerful individuals
- To work in partnership with children and families to allow the community to experience positive mental health
Teaching and Learning
- Children are able to reach a well being where they are excited to come to school and can focus on their learning
- Children have a high self-esteem which enables them to continue a love for learning
Maintaining mental health through Covid
During the current climate we are aware of the increased need to support children, families and staff with well being following the Covid-19 pandemic.
In order to support this we have implemented a Recovery Curriculum and linked this to our strategies to support mental health and behaviour. Staff are constantly monitoring children’s well being with daily circles and using the strategies laid out within each section below to support children to return to school happy and healthy. Staff are asked to record on the well being register the average well being of children over a month. This then supports the Mental Health Team to work alongside Phase Leaders and the Inclusion team to ensure children are provided with the support they require to allow them to progress in their learning and become strong and powerful individuals.
Brooklands Farm has been awarded the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools.