How to prevent mental health problems in secondary schools and develop emotional resilience in students

11th July 2022 | Blogs

How a whole-school approach prevents mental health problems from arising

Secondary school students

Thrive Licensed Practitioner training

Thankfully for Samantha Strange and Vicki Williams of Northfields School and Sports College and Fortis Academy respectively, they caught on early to a secret formula: Thrive Licensed Practitioner training. This revolutionary training gives you the insight needed to spot and respond to pupils’ mental health needs with confidence - and in the most appropriate way. It’s one of the many reasons Thrive is the wellbeing provider of choice for over 75,000 senior leaders and classroom staff in the UK. 

 

Now Samantha and Vicki are equipped with:

  • Insight into which young people 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:

 

“I see students who aren’t engaging with education for a number of reasons. The most common one is poor behaviour. We were using isolation booths and exclusions but the approach wasn’t working and every student we spoke to about behaviour had a story. We wanted to look at this in detail and move away from sanctions towards something more restorative so they felt more able to access lessons.

Thrive has helped us pull everything together. It also makes our pastoral work measurable which has been really useful for reporting to Ofsted. The biggest difference we’ve observed is that truancy levels have dropped dramatically. Thrive gives you the theory and the scientific evidence as well as the practical tools to approach situations differently to get a different result.” 

Samantha Strange. Personalised Learning Centre Manager, Northfields School & Sports College. 

Secondary school pupils

 

“Our pupils are more resilient now as a result of Thrive and this will mean that their grades will increase. Thrive is teaching them empathy and to take on another’s point of view, which has helped their tolerance to grow. 

We had one school refuser who hadn’t been in since Y4. When he was in primary, he was forcibly dragged in and that caused a huge amount of trauma for him. He’s had Thrive sessions and now he’s willing to come into school because he understands that it’s OK to feel fear. We had another pupil who had been excluded a number of times. There has been a total change in him because he now feels understood. Thrive has made it a much happier picture and parents love what it has done for their children.”

Vicki Williams. Teacher, Fortis Academy.

emotionally-resilient secondary school pupils

 

 

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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