Cornwall Schools’ Wellbeing Hub Newsletter 11th October 2024
Friday 11th October 2024
Welcome to the Wellbeing Newsletter
Part 1 - Training & Events
Oracy
The fourth “R” of education is in the news with the recent report from the Oracy Education Commission, ‘We Need to Talk’. Oracy is high on our agenda too as it is a key part of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL). We are working on a SEL resource for schools to complement the Brilliant ME! resource.
Oracy and Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) are deeply intertwined. When students have strong oracy skills, they can better express their thoughts, feelings, and perspectives, leading to improved relationships with peers and teachers.
Working on the resource has led us to some terrific work on oracy / SEL in schools including the super resources created by the Town End Research School.
Website update
All change for www.headstartkernow.org.uk and the wellbeing hub
We are delighted to let you know that our refreshed and redesigned website went live recently. We made it simpler to find what you need as professionals supporting children and families need as well adding a new, more prominent area for parents and carers.
Have a look and let us know what you think!
The fresh new look is thanks to the wonderful Kat and Mat at Iteracy.com.
Our attention now turns to our Young People’s site, www.startnowcornwall.org.uk. We are looking forward to working with C&YP to ensure they get the site they need… We can’t wait to get started.
New addition – you can this and recent wellbeing newsletters in our latest news section.
Upcoming Training
Find details of all our training including on-demand interactive modules
Have you joined the Headstart Kernow Creative Education membership yet?
Offering full and free access to a huge range of online, on-demand content for all school staff, governors and a dedicated membership for parents and carers.
Plus access to Live Networks for safeguarding and MH and wellbeing (with more to come)
We’ve pulled together some example pathways and themed content for you to explore.
Check out our suggestions for:
Staff
Staff wellbeing, Anxiety, Whole School Approaches
Parents and carers
Helping children learn coping skills and strategies, anxiety, exams
www.headstartkernow.org.uk/creative-education/
Digital Resilience Conference (FREE)
9.30-3.30, 21st November 2024,
Venton Centre, Chapel Parc, Newquay TR8 5AH
The Digital Resilience Conference will be an opportunity for professionals to explore issues related to children and young people’s engagement in the digital world, with a focus on solutions and practical support. We have speakers with a wealth of experience supporting young people around their digital lives, as well as extensive academic and practical knowledge of the issues related to the digital world. Topics will include responding to sexual image sharing, recognising and responding to issues with gaming and gambling, supporting young people with SEND around digital issues, and digital sex and relationships education. This event will be suitable for anyone who supports children and / or young people and has concerns around or an interest in the digital world.
Our Safeguarding Children Partnership (OSCP)
Sexting Safeguarding Training
A two hour session supporting you to deal with safeguarding issues related to youth sexual image sharing, sometimes referred to as ‘sexting’. The session will cover:
- The law governing youth sexual image sharing, including official police responses to consensual image sharing between minors.
- The problems associated with using scare tactics, including preventing disclosure and spreading inaccurate information.
- The best way to respond to aggravated sexting incidents using the harm reduction approach.
This training is delivered as part of the Headstart Digital Resilience offer.
Dates available September 2024 - June 2025. Book your place here
Belonging – an antidote to trauma, Dr Lisa Cherry
14th November 2024 17.00 – 19.00 (online)
Karen Treisman webinars and resources
A limited number of licences for Karen Treisman webinars and resources designed as CPD modules for small groups of 3-20 people are available for free to Cornwall schools and settings.
Click here to sign up for the webinars
‘Feeling Safe‘ – 2 Day Protective Behaviours Foundation Course
Fridays: 15th and 22nd November
Chy Trevail (Council Building)
Bodmin
More information / booking and details of future dates
‘Feeling Safe’ is a basic fundamental need for children and young people to feel they belong and can succeed at school (to even get to / stay in school for some YP).
‘Feeling Safe’ and recognising when we’re unsafe and knowing what we can do about it is crucial for helping children and young people ‘survive and thrive’ online or, when at risk from County Lines exploitation or just feeling comfortable about being out and about in their communities.
‘Feeling safe’ is at the heart of trauma recovery, relational practice, being adventurous in learning and in life and is a basic Human Right.
The Protective Behaviours 2 Day Foundation Training explores ‘feeling safe’ in all these aspects and more and in the context of supporting children, young people and families here in Cornwall as we work together to help ensure Cornwall is a Brilliant Place to be a Child and Grow Up.
Join us and find out more.
Other Training
The Carnegie Centre for Excellence of Mental Health in Schools
FREE Mental Health Community Events on Boys and Young Men’s Mental Health / Toxic Masculinity
Read and Evaluate: “Where are the men?” book by Andrew Bernard
Date & Time: 11th November 18:00 – 19:00
Let’s Talk About “A Whole School Approach to Boys and Young Men’s Mental Health” with Stephanie Wright
Date & Time: 5th December 18:00 - 19:00
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Part 2 - News / Resources / Updates
Education Support - World Mental Health Day Toolkit
World Mental Day is held every 10th October to raise awareness of mental health and drive positive change for everyone's mental health. This year's theme is prioritising mental health in the workplace.
Education Support have handpicked some of their popular resources to help you and your colleagues stay mentally well.
Why not share this toolkit with your colleagues to start the conversation about mental health in your workplace?
We are also very taken with Education Support’s Wellbeing Resources for Teaching Assistants
Every day should be a day to prioritise staff wellbeing in schools.
Schools in Mind have also created a World Mental Health Day Toolkit
Empathy Lab – November is Empathy Action Month
What is Empathy Action Month?
Social action is an important part of empathy. When we take time to understand other people’s feelings and experiences, it spurs us on to act.
In other words, we put empathy into action. That means everyone coming together to improve each other’s lives and solve problems that are facing their communities. This could be as small as actively listening to one another or as big as a whole-school litter pick.
Every November, we help young people focus on ways to make a difference.
We want to encourage everyone to make every day an Empathy Day, and to keep taking steps to build a better, more empathetic world.
Wellbeing Book Club Review
Understanding and Reducing Anxiety in the Primary School by Shirley Clarke, Angela Evans and Kate Moss (Routledge 2025)
The blurb: ‘Everyone working in education, and beyond, is fully aware of the current mental health crisis for pupils. Understanding and Reducing Anxiety in the Primary School combines the expert knowledge of a specialist in formative assessment, a child and adolescent psychotherapist and an outstanding headteacher to address how we may tackle this issue and improve the wellbeing of children in our schools’.
We loved this book for all sorts of reasons. It is very well written, accessible and easy to read whilst being full of powerful and relevant content for schools. It is firmly rooted in teaching and learning. This includes brilliant section on ‘supporting the learning to reduce anxiety’. It is full of practical ideas and strategies There is a strong Social and Emotional Learning theme too. With excellent suggestions for linking across the curriculum. There is a focus on the power of nature and the arts. It includes a chapter on using reading to explore emotions as well link with literacy learning intentions.
The power of this superb book is that is so very clearly for and about schools and the business of teaching & learning. At the same time offering a compassionate and caring (and effective) approach to understanding and supporting anxiety.
Highly recommended.
Want to find out more about our passion for books and wellbeing? Looking for specific books for staff / parents and carers / children? Visit our wellbeing book club.
Brook Wellbeing Hub for YP in Cornwall aged 11-25
Brook are expanding our mental health support for young people in Cornwall with the launch of our new Wellbeing Hub.
Open to 11-25 year olds, the Wellbeing Hub will offer a range of early intervention programmes led by our trained specialists and counsellors. With our non-judgemental, need-led support, young people will be guided towards making positive changes in their lives. Programmes include:
- Mental Health Literacy: group and one-to-one sessions aimed at enhancing young people’s awareness of mental health, and the practical steps they can take to improve their wellbeing
- My Life: through our unique one-to-one support programme, young people are supported to set their own wellbeing goals, while also furthering their knowledge and understanding of sexual health and relationships.
- Counselling: 8-12 50 minute counselling sessions aimed at supporting young people address the issues negatively affecting their mental health and wellbeing.
The Wellbeing Hub is now open and taking referrals, and all our programmes are free to 11-25 year olds living or studying in Cornwall.
For more information, as well as details on how to refer on to the programmes please visit:
https://www.brook.org.uk/regions/cornwall-wellbeing-hub/
New approach to measuring pupil wellbeing:
free survey resources and guidance
CORC has launched a suite of free Wellbeing Measurement for Schools (WMfS) resources.
These have been developed to support schools to design their own questionnaires and surveys to understand more about the wellbeing of the pupils in their schools.
The resource includes tried and tested sets of questions covering five broad areas of wellbeing, each with various questionnaires to choose from, and a comprehensive step-by-step guide and additional resources. The five areas are:
- Emotional health
- Emotional strengths and skills
- Relationships
- School life
- Help and support
Please visit the Measuring pupil wellbeing pages to download these new modular surveys and our step-by-step guides.
- Measuring staff wellbeing
- Support for schools
- Measuring wellbeing in colleges
- Measuring wellbeing in the early years
The resources will help schools to better understand their pupil’s wellbeing. CORC’s approach gives schools the flexibility to focus on what is important to them with the rigour that comes from using validated questionnaires.
Visit For Schools (corc.uk.net)
Why We Need Sleep
Download a Digital Schools Pack from the Teen Sleep Hub. It is packed full of posters, graphics and advice sheets that they can download, print off and share.