11/2/22

We started the week with a whole school virtual assembly focused on ‘Children’s Mental Health Week’.
This year’s theme is ‘Growing Together’ with a focus on growing emotionally and finding ways to help each other grow. 

Newsround ran an article which highlighted the impact that the pandemic has had on children’s mental health. In the article they state that:
‘New research carried out by Place2Be ahead of CMHW has found that 95 per cent of staff working in UK schools have witnessed increased levels of pupil anxiety since the start of the school year.  In a survey of 1,130 school leaders, it was found that 86 per cent of teaching staff had noticed an increase in low self-esteem among pupils since returning to the classroom following lockdown.’
As a school we are committed to doing all that we can to support children with their mental health and well-being.

There are resources available online which parents may be interested in that offer support and guidance in relation to children’s mental health and well-being.  The NSPCC website includes a range of resources and can be reached from the following link:  https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/

To mark CMHW, we asked all of the children to decorate a piece of fabric with something that makes them feel happy.  Their pieces are going to be stitched together to make some sort of tapestry which we hope to show the children when we return from half-term. 

We have also been talking to the children about ‘Safer Internet Day’ which was on the 8th February.  The theme for this year was - ‘All fun and games?  Exploring respect and relationships on line.’  In assembly last week, we focused with our Key Stage 2 children on the importance of using the internet responsibly - ensuring that you show the same level of respect online as you would in real life.  We also talked about what to do if you receive an inappropriate or unkind message which would include saving the evidence and telling a trusted adult. 

It is really important for parents to ensure that they are regularly talking to their children about their use of technology and are also actively monitoring their use of it.

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