How to develop emotional resilience in primary schools

"Wellbeing must be central to how we teach our children if we want them to thrive - academically or otherwise."

The increase in anxiety and depression amongst children started long before the pandemic, but mental health problems have skyrocketed, and crisis presentations have surged since coronavirus took hold.

This sums up the mood of The Times Education Commission in ‘Bringing Out the Best: How to Transform Education and Unleash the Potential of Every Child’.

With over 600 witnesses contributing, the report calls for “a shift towards prevention rather than cure, with more emphasis placed on developing the emotional resilience of young people.”

Times Education Quote

A whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing

Thankfully for Ben Travitzky and Chris Harrison, members of the senior leadership team at Baltonsborough Primary School and Grove Community Primary School respectively, they caught on early to a secret formula: Thrive's expert training and online tool. Thrive's whole-school approach helps prevent mental health issues from arising and supports children to feel safe, secure and ready to learn. That’s why we're the wellbeing provider of choice for over 75,000 senior leaders and classroom staff in the UK.

Now Ben and Chris are equipped with:

Insight into which children have gaps in their social and emotional development
Age-appropriate action plans to support those needing additional support
Strategies to reduce anxiety and boost resilience, trust and willingness to learn
Detailed reports to evidence impact and track progression of groups or individuals

Here's what they both said:

"Where we see the biggest gaps for our children is around self-esteem. That's where Thrive has really helped them. If children aren't happy, then you can forget about learning and so we want to support children to become happy, confident, well-rounded individuals. Thrive has played a massive part in that."

Chris Harrison. Co-Headteacher and KS2 Lead, Grove Community School.

"We experienced a cultural shift in a matter of weeks! 100% of staff were able to evidence ways their learning had impacted their interactions with children. 99% of children could describe how different sensory inputs might cause them to become dysregulated. 97% of parents reported evidence of the above learning at home. I cannot stress the value of Thrive in the short term enough."

Ben Travitzky. Headteacher (Acting), Baltonsborough Primary School.

Over to you

We've been improving behaviour, attendance and attainment for over 25 years and starting your journey with us couldn't be easier. When you’re ready to join the 2,800+ other settings shifting towards prevention and placing more emphasis on developing resilience, click here to schedule a 30-minute Discovery Call with your regional expert. We want you to ensure that you’re spending your time, energy and funding wisely. These calls allow you to have your questions answered and establish whether or not we’re a good fit. Our team won’t sell to you, but they will let you know if they think we can help.

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How to develop emotional resilience in primary schools

"Wellbeing must be central to how we teach our children if we want them to thrive - academically or otherwise."

The increase in anxiety and depression amongst children started long before the pandemic, but mental health problems have skyrocketed, and crisis presentations have surged since coronavirus took hold.