ALL’S WELL at a North-East primary school thanks to the tireless efforts of staff and pupils who have just secured a gold award for wellbeing.
The accolade comes after Reid Street Primary School, Darlington, embarked on a project with Leeds Beckett University's Carnegie School in association with the School’s Advisory Service.
Concerns over mental health have grown worldwide since the COVID pandemic with more factors than ever impacting on the lives of people of all ages.
Staff at Reid Street Primary School conducted a year-long audit of children’s mental health and whether the necessary policies and processes were in place to address wellbeing issues.
Parent support advisor/higher level teaching assistant leading the project Tracey Charlton said: “Our initial assessment was that we should go for bronze but when our official mentor looked at all the evidence she felt we weren’t doing ourselves justice. I was over the moon when we were awarded gold.”
The school has introduced a helping hands room, tailored support programmes such as Zones of Regulation, calming and sensory areas around the building and exercises to help pupils regulate themselves.
“We gathered feedback on stress-related issues and developed a culture of support working with staff, pupils, parents, governors, carers and external services and were found to be excelling in all areas,” said Mrs Charlton.
“We have a wellbeing team, a mental health lead and we talked to staff about the training they have completed around mental health first aid and counselling. We have also looked at how best to support children with ASD and ADHD.
“We recognise that any adult within our school community can struggle with their mental health so I have undergone training on how to support them. We have also carried out a lot of work with harder to reach groups and, on a practical level for the cost of living crisis, we have the Sharing Shed for parents to bring in what they can, such as food, clothes and toiletries, so others can take what they need.
“Getting gold isn’t the end of it for us. This situation is continually evolving so we need to adapt constantly.”
Principal Paula Ayto said: “We have all been concerned about wellbeing since the pandemic and while we felt we were doing well we can’t afford to be complacent as we strive to rebuild our community. Mrs Charlton has done a tremendous job at driving this initiative forward and ensuring we keep a very close eye on everyone’s mental wellbeing.”
