Since 2015, hundreds of schools, children, parents and carers have come together to raise awareness of children’s mental health. Organised by children’s mental health charity, Place2Be, Children’s Mental Health Week aims to empower and support children who may be facing mental health difficulties.
To mark the week, our Calderdale Mental Health Support Team (MHST) has been visiting schools across the area to deliver workshops, engage in wellbeing activities and host assemblies.
My Voice Matters
This year’s theme of My Voice Matters focuses on the importance of giving children the space to express their views, thoughts and feelings. Enabling children to feel heard and supported is key to positive self-esteem, as well as improved health and wellbeing.
To bring the theme to life throughout local schools, our Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHPs) encouraged young people to talk about what matters to them, reflecting on the positive things that they do well through journal prompts.
Pupils used megaphones to capture their thoughts, writing about what they’d like their teachers to know, and what matters to them most.
Sessions were delivered around the importance of using your voice, where pupils contributed thoughts on how school affects their mental health, as well as the things school can do to help them feel happier. Our EMHPs then worked with schools to reflect on pupil voice and feedback, identifying changes that could be made to improve their wellbeing at school.
Getting creative
Taking part in creative activities is another way in which children can express themselves. The team hosted a range of sessions across Calderdale schools to promote wellbeing, such as yoga, arts and crafts, and relaxation techniques.
It was brilliant to see how passionate our schools and pupils were about expressing their views and voices as part of this week, with many taking on board positive changes to improve school-based wellbeing in the future.
What did you do for Children’s Mental Health Week? Let us know @NorthpointMH
