Student wellbeing and mental health

Student Wellbeing

At Cheam High School, we are committed to developing and maintaining positive emotional and mental health and general wellbeing in our school community for both students and staff.  We firmly believe that happy, secure students learn more effectively and are more confident and motivated with their studies. 

However, we recognise that feeling happy and secure at all times can be challenging for some students and that all of us can experience changes in our general wellbeing for a range of reasons.  Because of this, we promote a culture where all members of the school community feel valued and supported and all feel able to share concerns where they arise.

We promote this culture through:

• High quality teaching and student support
• Positive interactions between staff, students and home
• Our pastoral support system which includes: tutors, Year Teams, Safeguarding Leads, Personal Learning Support Unit (PLUS), the Education Welfare Officer (EWO), mentors and members of the Leadership Team attached to each year group
• Extensive liaison with external services, where appropriate, to ensure that, as far as possible, students receive the support that they need
• PSHE lessons which follow our bespoke Learning is Forever (LIFE) curriculum which is constantly reviewed and update to reflect students’ needs
• Assemblies and tutor activities which focus on well-being and key aspects of safeguarding
• Information shared in the weekly Cheam High Flyer and on the school website
• HR processes within the school
• Staff training to assist staff in identifying mental health warning signs and advising them on best practice strategies

Mental Health in Schools Trailblazer Pilot

The government has recently been looking closely at what can be done to improve children and young people’s emotional resilience and mental health.  Following the Green Paper on this topic, a national initiative has been devised to help services such as schools do more to support young people in this critical area of their development.  £1.85 million has been pledged to schools South West London to start developing this project.  We are pleased to report that we have been one of around 70 schools to receive additional resources and expertise to help us support our students. 

This has been part of what is called a ‘Trailblazer Pilot’ and will help schools and other, linked services, decide how best to support young people with their mental health. The Pilot means that we have access to school-based support workers who offer both one-to-one support and group work sessions for our students, parents and carers. Where needed, support workers can also signpost or refer to specialist Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). The sessions aim to give children and young people practical skills for managing a range of feelings and offer parents and carers an opportunity to practise the conversations that encourage better mental health and wellbeing.

You can also find out more about other services which may be able to help your child with their mental health and/or wellbeing here