Children at Newington Community Primary in Ramsgate have each been given a simple and easy way to help them care for their wellbeing.
Every pupil has been given a pot and some seeds to plant – they can watch as the seeds grow and flourish and be reminded that their mental health and wellbeing are just like the plants that with time and care will blossom.
The initiative was part of a mental health awareness week that reinforced the school’s ongoing strategies and pastoral care.
Assistant Head Teacher Taralee Kennedy is the school’s mental health lead and she explained about the activities that were organised and co-ordinated by teaching colleague James Bennett, who is the lead on Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHE).
She said: “Our children have been learning about recognising how they are feeling and how they can help themselves.
“As well as the simple and effective planting seeds idea, girls and boys across the school took part in different activities.
“For example, in Reception they read stories about wellbeing and created the space planet ‘Zest’. In Year 2 the children drew support balloons, while in Year 6 they made positivity trees. There were also a colourful array of wellbeing posters that focused on important thoughts such as happiness and calmness.”
“Across the whole school all the children were invited to wear a headdress of their choice to help raise funds for our wellbeing resources and also add some brightness and happiness to their day. We saw some creative colourful headwear and some outrageously vibrant hair.”
Head Teacher Hannah Tudor praised the important initiatives. She said: “This was an awareness event that built on Newington’s very strong wellbeing provision that already gives great support to our girls and boys and their families. It also embraced the vital messages of the Place2Be charity’s children’s mental health awareness programme.
“We believe that caring for all aspects of their lives within our school community is paramount and we will continue with an ongoing range of ideas through the year to support this.
“To further assist families and children we have created a wellbeing hub on our school website that signposts key support groups. This is simple and easy to access online through this link – www.newington-ramsgate.org.uk/Wellbeing-Zone.”
The hub includes links to the Child Mind Institute, Young Minds, NHS Self Help, Kent Resilience Hub and the Kent Community Health team.
Kent Resilience Hub says: “As a parent or carer there will be many times during your child’s life when you will observe your child’s resilience being tested. This could be friendship difficulties, managing change, or dealing with loss.
“You may find yourself looking for tips and ideas to support your child to feel better. There are a number of ways to help your child become more resilient, including how to better manage the ups and downs that life can bring.” (Kentresiliencehub.org.uk)
Young Minds states: “Our vision is clear: we want to see a world where no young person feels alone with their mental health.
“To achieve this, that wait for support has to end. If all young people can get the mental health support they need, when they need it, we can stop an emerging mental health need becoming a crisis. This is our purpose – and we are absolutely clear about we can make it happen.” (Youngminds.org.uk)
