Mental Health and Wellbeing
Mental health is a state of well-being in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community. (World Health Organization)
At St Michael’s our Christian vision shapes all that we do. We are very much a ‘team’ at St Michael’s; staff, pupils, parents and governors work closely together to ensure that every pupil has the opportunity to grow in body, mind and spirit; to flourish as a child of God and experience the joy and hope of ‘life in all its fullness’.
In addition, we aim to promote positive mental health for all pupils and members of staff. We pursue this aim using both universal, whole school approaches and specialised, targeted approaches aimed at vulnerable pupils. Our Mental Health and Wellbeing policy outlines the steps we are taking as a school to achieve this aim.
How do we support our pupils’ Mental Health and Wellbeing?
At St Michael’s we all play an active role in supporting the wellbeing of our pupils. We do this using the tiered approach outlined below. Tutors see the children daily and are often the first port of call for pupils who have a problem. Tutors will share any concerns with pastoral staff who might then have more direct conversations with the pupils to assess their needs.
Strategies will be put in place for any pupils who need additional wellbeing support. This may be in the form of weekly meetings with a member of the pastoral team where issues can be addressed and advice given. Alongside support from the pastoral team, we might also signpost pupils to online support.
For pupils who still need support after working with the pastoral team, a referral may be made to one of the tier 2 services to request more specific support. All of the tier 2 services are external agencies and can only be accessed via a referral. Parents/Carers can self-refer to many of these services. Please take a look at the Support and Advice section of this webpage for further details and links.
Services at tier 3 are a much higher level of support. These have limited availability and are services that are provided at a cost to the school.
If you have any concerns about your child, we would encourage you to contact school and speak to your child’s Tutor, Pupil Manager or another member of our Wellbeing Team.
