Improving pupils’ wellbeing with KIWI and Character Strength Development
February 2023 saw schools and communities across the UK connect for Place2Be’s 9th year of Children’s Mental Health Week.
Dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of children’s mental well-being, the charity addresses the pressing issue of mental health in young people.
#ChildrensMentalHealthWeek 2023
The theme of Children’s Mental Health Week 2023 was Let’s Connect, which aimed to encourage people to make healthy, rewarding, and meaningful connections.
Place2Be data released in February 2023 revealed that many young people seen by a Place2Be counsellor within the last year have experienced anxiety in social situations and have had difficulties interacting with their classmates.
Establishing friendships in young people from an early age can not only allow them to support one another but can prevent loneliness and anxiety.
During the week, the #ChildrensMentalHealthWeek hashtag was one of the most used by MPs and politicians on social media, including supportive tweets from 10 Downing Street, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the Minister for Mental Health.
Mental health cases in young people are on the rise. And with access to children’s mental health services deemed inadequate due to this increase in demand, the NHS Long Term Plan will see thousands of children and young people access support via NHS-funded mental health services and school-or-college-based mental health services by the financial year 2023/24.1
There is a risk that these conditions continue into adulthood without the correct intervention. The statistics on mental health from childhood to adolescence reveal that 50% of mental health problems are established by age 14. 2
On the 23rd of January 2023, a government press release stated, “NHS mental health support teams are being rolled out in schools and colleges, offering early mental health help to children and young people. We are on target to reach 35% of pupils by the end of this year.” 3
How can Cloud9UK help?
Cloud9UK upholds the ethos of Children’s Mental Health week all year round.
We provide a Mental Health Awareness Suite covering EYFS through to KS4.
Aiding in early intervention has proven to be one of the most effective means of mental health care. It can help support the prevention or reduction of the progress of mental health problems in the future.
Our Mental Health suite provides extensive resources to support teachers, parents, and students at their points of need.
To improve children’s mental health, the government introduced a new compulsory curriculum in September 2020 – Relationships, Health, and Sex Education, or RSHE. Cloud9UK’s whole school solution covers all PSHE topics to improve student well-being and life outcomes.4
Why not book a demo today to learn more about how Cloud9UK can help support your students?
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References
- NHS Long Term Plan
- NHS ‘Mental Health of Children and Young People in England 2021 – wave 2 follow up to the 2017 survey.’
- The government Press release – Mental health services boosted by £150 million government funding.
- Department for Education ‘Policy paper Changes to personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) and relationships and sex education (RSE).’ Published June 2019.