At Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Academy we value the importance of emotional well-being and mental health. Therefore, we follow the eight principles created by Public Health England.

Following these eight principles at Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Academy we offer;

Leadership and management

Support from the senior leadership team is essential to promote and embed emotional health and wellbeing. Leadership and Management champions the eight principles created by Public Health England. The Section 48 inspection report from May 2019 stated that “Leaders in Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, place real value on the team and are mindful of staff as well as pupils’ needs.

School ethos and environment

The environment and Ethos of a school affects children’s physical, emotional and mental health and wellbeing, as well as impacting on attainment. The inspection report from May 2019 highlighted that “Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary is a warm, welcoming and inclusive school where all are valued, respected and very well cared for.” Some of the opportunities we provide for children to look after their mental health and well-being in school are…

  • ‘Well-being Wednesday’ for KS2 children as a lunchtime club.
  • Informal pastoral care, ‘colouring club’ to support vulnerable children
  • ‘Thoughtful Thursday’ is a blurb written by a member of staff and shared on our Facebook page each week.
  • Fruit of the Spirit awards – kindness, joy, patience, gratitude, love peace and faithfulness.

Curriculum, teaching and learning

Quality teaching and a good curriculum allow children to gain the skills they need to make good academic progress and benefit their health and wellbeing. At Holy Rosary we have a new RHSE programme.

  • Ten Ten is a new resource to be introduced in September 2020. This is focussed on RHSE - Relationships, Health and Sex Education. Our Catholic education also focuses on strong Christian values which teach and encourage our children to make good choices. They also have excellent role models in school. ‘Happiness’ lessons were also created and have been delivered in some classrooms. A display of children’s work is displayed in the corridor.
  • Assembly with children to talk about well-being and mental health with Alliance (postponed due to lockdown – to be arranged as soon as possible)

Student voice

At Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary we value our children’s opinions. It is important to us that they feel involved in decisions that impact on them and they feel part of the school and wider community. We achieve this through;

  • Student voice – Student council
  • Pupil Chaplin’s/Mini Vinnies

Staff development, health and wellbeing

Staff at Holy Rosary are passionate about CPD and supporting our children. Staff training is essential in

promoting staff health and wellbeing and an essential principle of the whole-school approach.

  • Staff training with Alliance (postponed due to lockdown – to be arranged as soon as possible.)
  • Staff – incentive schemes: ‘shout out’ display in the staffroom, ‘you’ve been mugged’ and flexibility to support work/life balance.
  • Staff meeting delivered by Emma Wilson – Minutes shared

You’ve been Mugged

Identifying need and monitoring impact

We recognise the importance of monitoring the impact of any support that is put in place. We work closely with Alliance to support the children’s and family’s needs.

Working with parents/carers

At Holy Rosary we value the support from our parents and careers and understand the vital role they play in supporting our children’s mental health and wellbeing. Some of the opportunities we offer are…

  • Parents and Carers – open door approach, visual and approachable at opening and closing times of schools.
  • Parent coffee morning with Alliance (postponed due to lockdown – to be arranged as soon as possible.)
  • Parent courses delivered by Alliance (postponed due to lockdown – to be arranged as soon as possible.)

From the Section 48 inspection report, (May 2019) it was recognised that “Pupils know they are cared for and staff are very supportive of vulnerable families and groups in society. They offer this support in a quiet, confidential and practical way using a variety of opportunities to help, including the established food bank and support to charities.”

Targeted support

It is important for us as a school to ensure that support is given to all our children and families. We recognise that, at times, some families may need more support than others with their mental health and wellbeing. During our Section 48 inspection, it was noted that “Pupils know that everyone is respected and cared for in their school and they are proud of this. They notice the needs of others and this is a focus of the work carried out by the Mini Vinnies group.”

  • Referrals made into Alliance to support our children and families. CBT and other therapies delivered by Alliance.