Identifying need and monitoring impact
To support pupils to thrive, a whole school approach to mental health and emotional wellbeing should be embedded according to the unique needs of the school community. It is also important that the outcomes of any initiatives and interventions are measured and their impact monitored.
Understanding the needs of the whole school community is key to becoming a school where pupils and staff thrive and where they are all supported to manage their emotional health and wellbeing.
In order to ensure that the interventions and processes in place are meeting the needs of the school community and having a positive effect, monitoring impact is also important.
Thriving
A school that is thriving in this area will:
- use a tool such as the West Sussex Whole School Approach to Wellbeing Reflective Tool and Guidance Booklet or the Whole School and College Approach Measurement Toolkit to identify their areas of strength and areas for development
- use a range of methods to collect pupil views around mental health and wellbeing to inform WSA planning such as those resources found on the Child Outcomes Research Consortium
- use a range of methods to collect data about pupil MHEW across cohorts
- use validated tools to identify early signs of mental health difficulties in individual pupils
- regularly monitor staff wellbeing and feedback the outcomes and actions to staff and governors
- liaise with parents to gather their views about the Whole School Approach to mental health and emotional wellbeing (MHEW) provision in the school
Identifying need and monitoring impact
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- The Anna Freud Mentally Healthy Schools Resource Hub provides whole school approach resources.
- The Wellbeing Index developed by The Children’s Society. Questionnaires are available free-of-charge to schools.
- Based on Prof. Martin Seligman’s PERMAH model, wellbeing surveys for staff, children, and young people.
- West Sussex County Council have created a Reflective Tool that may be useful. Optional additional materials for the Reflective Tool including in-depth questions, pupil versions of the tool, and staff questionnaires can be accessed on request by emailing thrivingin.education@westsussex.gov.uk.
- The Whole School and College Self-Assessment toolkit allows schools and colleges to look at both impact and outcomes of whole school mental health initiatives.
Additional reading and research
- Acceptability and Feasibility of Early Identification of Mental Health Difficulties in Primary Schools
- Best practice review of whole school approach (WSA) in the South-East of England
- Feasibility of School-Based Identification of Children and Adolescents Experiencing, or At-risk of Developing, Mental Health Difficulties