Mental health & wellbeing self-evaluation

Commitment to promote positive mental health & wellbeing

There is strong commitment in Norfolk to address the mental health and well-being needs of our children and young people. One in ten young people has some form of diagnosable mental health condition and we know that children with a mental health problem face unequal chances in their lives, particularly where childhood mental health issues continue into adulthood.

There is clear evidence that schools and colleges can, and do, play a vital role in identifying mental health needs at an early stage, referring young people to specialist support and working jointly with others to support young people experiencing problems. The government Green Paper: Transforming Children and Young People's Mental Health Provision, sets out how it will 'put schools and colleges at the heart of our efforts to intervene early and prevent problems escalating'.

Schools and colleges already do a lot to promote positive mental health. This self-review provides a guide to help learning settings to identify and support students with their mental health & wellbeing, and to know what constitutes excellent practice. The review is not a tool for judgement and it does not provide an exhaustive checklist of things everyone and every setting should be doing because every setting, and every child, is different.

We have used four descriptors:

Ineffective
Taking Action
Effective
Leading Practice

It is entirely possible to be at different stages for different aspects. It has been designed to be used as a development tool where a setting can identify areas of success and build upon them; see areas for development and plan improvement.

For the purposes of this self-review good mental health is defined as - a state of well-being in which an individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.

1. We need the following information in order to track which organisations have/have not yet responded, to summarise and analyse the data by type & geographic area, and to ask permission to share particular areas of good practice.

Name of Organisation
Type (school, academy, post-16, college, etc)
Organisation postcode
Name of person completing the survey

2. There is a designated and trained senior lead for mental health in the school/college/other setting

Ineffective
- Lack of senior management commitment
- No lead identified
- The lead identified but is not sufficiently senior within the organisation

Taking action
- Lead identified but not yet fully competent and effective within the role
- Lead hasn't undertaken or completed training

Effective
- There is a designated and trained member of staff who is responsible for the school's/college's approach to mental health and to developing joint working with mental health services.
- The designated lead:
  - oversees the help the school gives to pupils with mental health problems
  - helps staff to spot pupils who show signs of mental health problems
  - offers advice to staff about mental health
  - refers children to specialist services if they need to

Leading practice
- The lead contributes to system needs -aiding service design and development
- The lead collaborates / co-ordinates with other leads across the locality to share best practice

Evidence

3. There is a whole school approach leading to improved mental health outcomes for all students

Ineffective
- Mental health and wellbeing not seen as an integral part of all school decision making, policy and activity

Taking action
- There is commitment from senior leadership for whole school approach but it is not yet embedded

Effective
- Policies, activities, pastoral support and curriculum are designed to reflect and promote mental health and wellbeing
- Staff have received mental health awareness training
- There is good engagement from pupils and parents

Leading practice
- School is working with community leaders to help them understand how they can influence and promote good mental health
- Setting acts as a hub for the community and community is a vital resource for the setting
- Staff feel well supported with their mental wellbeing needs

Evidence

4. There are effective systems and processes in place to assess and identify students with possible mental health issues

Ineffective
- Staff not able/ confident to identify students with mental health needs
- Systems and processes in place but no evidence of action
- Staff not aware of support offered or referral routes

Taking action
- We are raising staff awareness and understanding of mental health needs
- Systems and processes in place but not fully implemented across the setting
- Staff identified to attend mental health awareness training e.g. Mental Health First Aid training

Effective
- School effectively monitors the needs of pupils with higher vulnerability indicators e.g. SEND, young carers
- Learners with mental health needs are identified in a timely fashion and are referred appropriately for support
- School is engaged with the Mental Health Services Schools Link worker

Leading practice
- Effectiveness of interventions:-
  - Teaching
  - Behaviour
  - Support
  - Specialist referral
  is monitored and evaluated and informs service development and delivery

Evidence:

5. All learners learn about mental wellbeing

Ineffective
- There is no time identified in curriculum for learners to learn about mental wellbeing

Taking action
- We are identifying mental health programmes based on the assessed needs of the learners

Effective
- Learners, staff and parents have a shared understanding of what is meant by mental wellbeing
- There is a specific focus on how mental health and wellbeing can support healthy relationships
- Learners know who to go to if they want to talk
- Learner feedback routinely used to inform delivery

Leading
- Vulnerable learners participate fully and have a voice in how to improve their, and other learners, experiences
- Learners self-identify and feel able to communicate with teaching/other appropriate staff about their mental health issues
- Mental health destigmatised and seeking access to support is normalised

Evidence

6. All teaching helps students build positive life skills such as resilience and self -management

Ineffective
- There is limited importance placed on enabling learners to develop core life skills

Taking action
- Teachers have had effective training and are actively committed to developing core life skills through all aspects of the curriculum
- Staff develop a greater awareness of the impact of mental wellbeing e.g. stress and anxiety

Effective
- Teaching is differentiated to address the needs of all learner groups
- Setting uses data systems to analyse the effectiveness and impact of interventions on hard outcomes such as attainment and attendance is reviewed and monitored

Leading
- Person centred approaches build upon and extend the experiences, skills and knowledge of learners
- Setting has a wide range of imaginative and effective teaching strategies which have a clear and positive impact on attainment and attendance
- Setting develops systems for soft outcomes

Evidence

7. Pupils are well supported at all key transition points

Ineffective
- Understanding of potential difficulties in transition is limited and vulnerable pupils are not routinely identified for support
- Learners and parents are unaware of transition support and arrangements

Taking action
- Limited links and relationships with feeder settings and onward destination settings
- Plans for transition are inconsistent and can be generalised rather than personal to the learner

Effective
- There is effective communication between settings, learners, parents/carers and the onward destination
- Receiving setting has a full understanding of the learner support needs

Leading
- There is a personalised transition plan and vulnerable learners are routinely successful once they transfer

Evidence

8. Internet and social media safety is promoted effectively with families and pupils

Ineffective
- Internet and social media safety is not addressed
- Potential risks and harms not understood or recognised

Taking action
- Policies in place but not consistently implemented across the setting

Effective
- Internet safety emphasised in curriculum
- Learners and staff are given strategies to effectively navigate social media in a safe and positive way
- Strengthened community support networks

Leading
- Learners fully understand how to manage social media safely and securely and are using it as a positive influence e.g. increasing self-esteem and social capital

Evidence

9. There is effective join up and partnership working between the school and partners e.g.

Mental health

Voluntary

Local authority

Troubled families

Ineffective
- There is a lack of awareness of what services are available to settings, students and their families. Professionals are unclear about what support and advice is available so support is limited to what is available within the setting
- Inter-agency relationships are inconsistent and not always productive or positive.
- Support from specialist agencies is often piecemeal and has a limited impact on progress made by learners

Taking action
- Settings are beginning to establish positive working relationships with a range of support agencies.
- The impact of external support is inconsistent. The setting recognises this inconsistency but plans to improve things are not in place.

Effective
- Settings have a clear knowledge about the services available to their students in the local area and a good understanding of how these services can support their students
- Settings engage with other agencies and actively look for further support to meet the individual needs of their learners.
- External support has a demonstrable impact on progress for vulnerable learners.

Leading
- There is robust and respectful support and challenge between partners leading to service improvement, spirit of co-production and shared ownership

Evidence

10. Families are well supported and parents/carers are actively engaged

Ineffective
- Communications with parents/carers are limited and ineffective

Taking action
- Families encouraged to engage but limited take up

Effective
- Staff actively welcome and utilise parental knowledge, expertise and help
- Setting is confident to provide challenge and support to families as appropriate

Leading
- Families are an equal partner in decision making and are informing system and service development and improvement

Evidence

Mental health & wellbeing self-evaluation

Commitment to promote positive mental health & wellbeing

1. We need the following information in order to track which organisations have/have not yet responded, to summarise and analyse the data by type & geographic area, and to ask permission to share particular areas of good practice.

2. There is a designated and trained senior lead for mental health in the school/college/other setting

3. There is a whole school approach leading to improved mental health outcomes for all students

4. There are effective systems and processes in place to assess and identify students with possible mental health issues

5. All learners learn about mental wellbeing

6. All teaching helps students build positive life skills such as resilience and self -management

7. Pupils are well supported at all key transition points

8. Internet and social media safety is promoted effectively with families and pupils

9. There is effective join up and partnership working between the school and partners e.g. Mental health Voluntary Local authority Troubled families

10. Families are well supported and parents/carers are actively engaged

9. There is effective join up and partnership working between the school and partners e.g.

Mental health

Voluntary

Local authority

Troubled families