Mental Health and Wellbeing
At Norton Primary School, we are committed to supporting the Mental Health and wellbeing of our pupils, staff and Governors. To show this we have recently achieved the Mental Health Champion Award and Healthy Schools Award. We know that everyone experiences life challenges that can make us vulnerable and at times, anyone may need additional emotional support. We strive to give all our children, staff and governors experiences and confidence to cope with whatever life may throw at them; building on self-esteem and resilience every day. We work hard in the hope that all our children are able to be forward thinking and appreciative. Giving the children essential knowledge of mental health will enable them to thrive in a modern Britain. We take the view that positive mental health is everybody’s business and that we all have a role to play, whether that is within our Norton family, national or international community.
School Values
Hope: (Strive) that our children lead happy and fulfilled lives through seeing the best in others and in themselves; they are resilient, forward looking and appreciative
Wisdom: (Think) that our children have the essential knowledge, skills and behaviours to guarantee that they thrive in modern Britain; the wisdom to preserve the beauty of our planet; the wisdom to make informed, positive decisions
Community: (Act) that our children celebrate differences and value everyone in our Norton family and wider community; they celebrate belonging to a local, national and international community as they celebrate difference and expect inclusion
Respect: (Respect) our children know that everyone has the right to be themselves. Norton is a place where everyone can feel safe, be happy and learn. Everyone at our school is equal and acts with respect and kindness towards each other. Our children respect themselves and are proud to be part of an inclusive school.
At our school we:
help children to understand their emotions and feelings from pre-school upwards
help children feel comfortable sharing any concerns or worries
help children socially to form and maintain relationships
promote self-esteem to ensure children know that they are important and can be the best that they can be
encourage children to be confident and ‘dare to be different’
help children to develop emotional resilience and to manage setbacks
promote the Five Ways to Wellbeing within our curriculum
give them an understanding of mental health
Offer after school clubs such as Marathon Club, Bean Bag Rounder’s, Dance
Staff trained in Mental Health First Aid
Winston Wish trained staff
Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) available to the children if needed
Visitors into school such as therapy/reading dogs.
Activities offered to selected children such as horse riding and forest schools.
We offer different levels of support:
Universal Support- To meet the needs of all our pupils within Norton through our overall ethos and our wider curriculum. For instance, our PSHE lessons, Physical Education, school trips, PGL in Year 6 and developing resilience on an everyday basis.
Additional support- For those who may have short-term needs within Norton who may have been made vulnerable by life experiences such as bereavement we offer ELSA support and/or Winston Wish staff support.
Targeted support- For pupils who need more differentiated support and resources or specific targeted interventions such as wellbeing groups or personal mentors, horse riding, ELSA support and forest schools
Lead staff members:
SENCO: Mrs Farren
PSHE Lead: Miss Bussey
Mental Health Lead: Mrs Frost
ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant): Mrs Frost
NEWS
Mental Health Champion Award
If you feel you and/or your child need support and advice regarding mental health and well-being please come in to see Mrs Farren, Mrs Frost or a member of staff. We also have a mental health notice board in the Infant cloakroom with support and advice on it