Carnegie course inspires practical solutions to boost students mental health

St Michael’s CE High School has always considered mental health to be of paramount importance. Serving families in an area of significant deprivation, the school values kindness and compassion as well as high standards for its community of 11- to 16-year-olds.

So when the pandemic hit, the school wanted to do its best to help students manage the emotional roller-coaster of Covid-19 and its aftermath.

Exceptional challenges

Kerry Whitehouse, school engagement development manager and senior mental health lead explains. “There was a noticeable increase in anxiety during the pandemic and we were seeing students struggling with unhealthy coping mechanisms, disordered eating and self-harm. Some students had problems interacting socially and we wanted to be able to help them navigate their emotions.

“Even though we had good mental health support systems in place, we felt we were swimming against the tide.”

Expert support

To refresh the school’s mental health strategy, Kerry signed up for a Carnegie Senior Mental Health Lead training course, but she was initially apprehensive about taking the advanced level. “I’m not part of the SLT so I thought I might be the odd one out and imposter syndrome started to kick in,” says Kerry. “But it wasn’t like that at all and the balance of the content was pitched really well.

“At the time we were completing the Carnegie school mental health award which helps school evaluate their practice, and the award sat nicely together with the course. I soon saw that I was in good hands with Carnegie, and it turned out to be the best course I’ve ever done.”

Positive change

Kerry used her training to support the design and development of recovery PHSE curriculum resources. “We needed a stronger connection between the way we supported students and what they were learning,” says Kerry. “We moved the emotional resilience aspect of the curriculum from Year 8 to Year 7, and we worked with children joining us from primary school so we could get our youngest students thinking about mental health from the outset.

“Students were at the heart of the initiatives and they threw themselves into developing PHSE lessons and presenting assemblies. We also trained up a team of student wellbeing champions so they could support their peers.

“Embedding a whole school culture for mental health sounds daunting, but I would say never underestimate the power of the little things. Our Feel-Good Fridays and mood booster sessions were a great conversation opener for students, and reminded them that we care about their wellbeing.”

Bringing staff on board

To make a lasting impact on mental health in the school, Kerry shared her learning with colleagues. “I have been delivering staff training on a whole school basis as well as bespoke training for smaller cohorts of staff.

“I made sure my training was about practical solutions with a recall activity at the end and three things to take away and build into their practice.

“Without the Carnegie training I wouldn’t have had the confidence to develop a positive mental health culture across the school.”

Family engagement

Kerry understood the importance of involving families in the strategy too. “The course helped me find ways to work more effectively with parents,” she explains.

“We’d always had a strong parental partnership but we realised there was more we could do to bring families along on our mental health journey so we invited parents to sit on our wellbeing advisory board, and they have been instrumental in highlighting issues and bringing ideas to the school.”

A hub for learning and sharing

One of the key benefits of the Carnegie Senior Mental Health Lead course was being able to network with other professionals. “We asked questions of our tutors through the platform, and we connected with other delegates through social media and Facebook groups,” explains Kerry.

“The opportunity to network with other people and discuss areas like school policy or staff wellbeing created the sense of being part of a wider community all striving towards the same aims.

“We didn’t just learn from local or national examples either, we looked at best practice from around the world, such as how school health nurses support mental health in Sweden. There were plenty of clear, practical ideas to take away and implement.

“The school is still in recovery mode from the pandemic, and it will be for a long time yet. But now we have an effective mental health strategy in place with everyone working together towards the same goals, we are much better placed to support our students, whatever the future holds.”