Mental Health and Well-being
At Courthill we recognise that good mental health is as important as good physical health. Our pupils are taught self-care techniques, including recognising and managing emotions, exercise, relaxation and how to build relationships through a rich and varied curriculum. We teach our children how they can help others with their mental health in age appropriate ways.
Working with Parents
- ​Parents are an integral part of our goal to strive for the best possible mental health for our children. We actively promote good mental health for all and make it part of our mission to further educate our parents, local community and beyond about the benefits of good mental health.
- Parents are always included in any concerns we have about a pupils’ health. We ensure that parents have a voice and recognise their contribution.​
The Environment
- Calm & Peaceful Classrooms – our learning environments are set up to be safe and calming places for pupils to learn. Adults understand the importance of creating spaces that are conducive to good mental health.
- Appreciating Nature & Beauty – we’ve created places to nurture mental health in our school grounds. Our sensory garden is used to foster children’s joy and wonder
How Can I Get Help for my Child?
​​If you are worried your child may be experiencing mental health issues, please talk to your child's class teacher or Miss Heather Lane, Inclusion Lead.
What is mental health?
We all have mental health.
Mental health is about our feelings, our emotions and our moods. Looking after our mental health is important.
We all have small feelings every day. These sometimes feel strong and overwhelming whether happy or sad, but they go away before too long.
Sometimes we experience big feelings. These feel strong and overwhelming for a long time. They stop us doing what we want to do in our lives.
At Courthill, we want all children to have the best possible start in life and we believe that educating children about positive mental and physical health underpins all that we do. Encouraging children to understand and be open about their feelings can give them the skills and resilience to cope with the new experiences and challenges they will encounter as they grow up.
At Courthill we;
- Make conversations about mental health a normal part of school life.
- Give our full attention to every child.
- Check our body language, ensuring we are open and relaxed.
- Ask open questions.
- Calmly stay with the feelings that arise and not steer away from the difficult emotions.
- Offer empathy rather than solutions.
- Remember we are all different.
- Look for clues about feelings.
Zones of Regulation
The Zones of Regulation are used to support children in understanding their emotions to then regulate them.
There are four ‘zones’, blue, green, yellow and red, as shown above. The children are taught that they will not always be in one zone but that they will move in and out of different zones.
The children ‘check in’ with their emotions at the beginning of the day and after lunch by noting which zone they are currently in. Usually this entails the child placing their name or picture on the colour that represents how they are feeling. This enables the teacher to gauge how best to settle the child so that they are ready to learn.
Techniques for returning back to the green zone could include:
Sensory activities in class or in the set up circuit in the school hall
A conversation with an adult to support them if something has upset them
Movement breaks within the classroom
Calming activities including mindfulness and breathing techniques
See the video below for a further brief explanation on the zones of regulation:
Sandwell
We all need to look after our mental health and well-being, and look out for each other. At Courthill, we are proud to have successfully been awarded the Sandwell Well-being Charter Mark. The charter mark was co-developed by Sandwell’s Inclusion Support team and public health department in order to develop and focus thinking around whole school approaches to promoting positive mental health and well-being. This is fundamental to our ethos in school. If children are happy and they have the skills to recognise when they need help with their own emotional and mental health, they will have positive experiences. We believe it is crucial to equip children with these vital skills from a young age as it will set them up for the rest of their lives.
Through feedback provided by pupils, staff and parents reflected that there is a culture of mutual respect across the board.
‘School makes me feel good because we have fun. In other schools there is just learning, learning, learning.’ Pupil
‘You can tell a teacher and then your worry gets smaller and smaller.’ Pupil
‘I feel the school strike the right balance in regards to well-being. They promote resilience, as well as encouraging independence and offering support where needed. My child’s self-esteem has grown tremendously and I feel that is largely due to the fantastic staff. They listen to, respond and support parents and children amazingly.’ Parent
‘As a team we are very caring and supportive. Compassion is a strength at Courthill – it’s a special place.’ Staff member
‘There is an ethos of valuing, celebrating and encouragement.’ Staff member
Anna Freud Centre
Just as we look after our physical health, it’s important to look after our mental health.
Self-care is all about what you can do to help yourself feel better or to keep yourself feeling good. It’s a way that we can look after our own mental health and wellbeing. It can help your body and mind to relax, drift away, or be more energised.
This self-care plan walks primary-aged children through a series of steps, helping them create a simple self-care plan that works for them. It helps children identify activities that they can use to support their mental health.
Some of the suggested self-care activities include:
- music and dance
- mindfulness
- art
The resource was co-written by Anna Freud Centre experts and young people, who shared ideas on self-care strategies that work for them.
Further resources
The websites below offer support and advice to parents/carers about adult and children's mental health.