Wellbeing and Pastoral (Thrive in the Hive)

At St John Henry Newman Catholic Primary School we are committed to supporting mental health and well-being for all. This includes supporting pupils, parents and staff members. As an establishment of education and work, we understand our responsibility when it comes to supporting mental health and well-being. 

Meet Our Team 

 

Mrs Harvey-Wilson	Mrs Jordan

What we do...

We take small groups out to play some games, take turns, do some craft and at the same time talking to them about issues that might be affecting them. Some children are chosen because there seems to be a need, others because they are a friend of a child that comes out and it helps to work on the friendship together.

A small overview of what we talk about…

• Mindfulness, self-esteem, wellbeing, vocabulary, behaviour/conflict, friendships, emotions and feelings.
• What makes a good friend, what would a good friend do, and what would they not do.
• What are you good at, what are you not so good at, what do we do when we have to work on the thing we are not good at.
• Worry, for example, thinking about the future or the past, does worrying change anything? How can we deal with this feeling?
• Being positive, seeing the good in ourselves and others, thinking of a good thing about yourself and everyone in the group.
• We also have some books that children can work through if needed, such as “My feelings and me”, “Don’t worry be happy” and “When I feel angry’.
• Different areas are important for different year groups within school, so what we would work on with reception children would not be the same as for Year 5.

So why is this important?

It helps the children in the school to be happy. We don’t just want children to leave St John Henry Newman with a great education, we want them to feel that they have been supported to face life, and life in secondary school, and have some great memories of their time here.

It is also important because as of 2023, 20% of 7-16 year olds have had at some point a mental health problem. This is up from 13% in 2017.

When we talk about mental health, it is not what we may first think about, it can just be about anxiety, low mood, attention, or behaviour or eating disorders.

This can impact on all aspects of their life or some aspect of their life, including education, attainment, wellbeing and relationships, feeling anxious, worry, sleep problems, feeling worthless and weight changes.

It is vital that children, parents and school staff reach out for help and support as early as possible, so we can equip children with the help they need to navigate their childhood and teenage years, and this is why we are working in school.

Please always come and chat or email pastoral@stjhn.org.uk if you feel you need to, or talk to your child’s class teacher, or a member of the Senior Leadership Team.

Mrs Jordan also deals with attendance, she will send out an email when your child is off, and deals with attendance letters. We always say in the attendance letter and in any parents meeting, that if there is any help you think your child needs, or if you are worried about anything to do with your child and school, please get in touch.