"Mental Health is 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"

World Health Organisation, 2018

At Fairfield Road we aim to promote good mental health and wellbeing for our whole community: students, staff, parents and carers.

We aim to develop protective factors by being a community in which all:

• are respected 
• have a sense of belonging and feel safe
• are able to talk openly with trusted adults
• see good mental health as something to be valued and nurtured

We want all members of our community to:

• feel confident in themselves
• be able to express a range of emotions appropriately
• be able to make and maintain positive relationships with others
• cope with the challenges of everyday life
• manage times of stress and deal with change
• thrive and achieve

We aim to achieve this through:

• our PSHE curriculum 
• awareness raising (wellbeing assemblies, wellbeing weeks, tips for good mental health)
• listening to our students 
• gaining insights via student voice
• working in partnership with parents/carers where there are concerns about mental health 
• signposting sources of external help and advice
• making referrals and working with external agencies to provide additional support to those who need it
• recognising the importance of staff mental health and wellbeing. 
• modelling healthy attitudes and habits 

At Fairfield Road we believe we have an important role to play in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of our children. Through our tailored curriculum we aim to develop physiologically, emotionally, intellectually  and spiritually mentally healthy children. Through teaching our PSHE sessions and relationships education sessions, we provide children with the skills, coping strategies and resilience to prevent poor mental health.

We have been awarded the AcSEED Award in September 2020. The AcSEED Award is a quality assurance mark presented to schools that have made a substantial effort to support the mental heath of their students and staff. It encourages and rewards the provision of high quality emotional wellbeing services, the broad provision of information right through to appropriately targeted intervention. Based on the best practices, the scheme defines a set of standard criteria that all schools must meet to receive the award.

In EYFS and Key Stage 1 much of our work is based on understanding feelings to ensure children feel confident enough to speak about their emotions. In Key Stage 2 we focus on keeping our bodies safe and healthy, how our body and emotions will change as we get older and the range and intensity of all types of feelings.

Links to useful websites and services in the area

Tameside Oldham and Glossop MIND have teamed up with 42nd street to introduce Tameside and Glossop community mental and emotional wellbeing offer, providing a range of support, information, guidance and training to young people aged 8-18 years old. Delivered via local community bases located in Ashton, Hyde, Stalybride and Denton, services offered are 1:1 support, wellbeing sessions, therapeutic courses, counselling, training and parental support.

YoungMinds is a charity committed to improving emotional well-being and mental health. Click here to find out more.

Click here to find out about the Be Well Tameside service to support with a range of health and wellbeing benefits

Click here to find out about the NSPCC Pants Rule to keep your child safe.

Click here for links to Childline offering free support for children on a wide variety of issues.

Click here for information on mindfulness and relaxation techniques from Relax Kids.

Click here to find more information on the five ways to wellbeing which aims to promote positive wellbeing.

This guide features what children do online, the threat of online strangers and how to ensure a healthy balance between internet use, your children's online digital security and more on online safety to mention.

Wellbeing Wallet

The wellbeing wallet is a resource created by Tameside that brings together the arts and wellbeing by partaking in practical activities. There is lots of evidence to suggest creativity helps emotional and mental health.

Tameside's Mental Health Poster

Child family guide to getting advice and getting help for emotional wellbeing

Random Acts of kindness Day February 2023

On 17th February we celebrated Random Acts of Kindness Day at school. Take a look at our activities below.

Nursery

This year for Random Acts of Kindness Day, we have been thinking about what we like about our friends in Nursery. We rolled the ball to each child and then paid compliments to that person. The teacher then wrote a quote for each of the children on a love heart note to make a whole class, giant love heart. The children took the notes away with them at the end of the day to celebrate the kindness with their families and grown ups at home. The Nursery class have shown that they have very kind hearts and they all make wonderful friends.

RLH

Today We have had a wonderful afternoon celebrating Random Acts of Kindness Day. We talked about how we can be kind to one another and how unkind words can hurt us. We then spent time making friendship bracelets for one another. Each child came up to the front and said something kind about the person that they made a bracelet for, before saying their name and giving them their bracelet.

RSB

Today we talked about what kindness looks like and the things we can do. The children came up with some splendid ideas such as sending a kind note to someone, picking litter up off the floor to be kind to creatures, using manners and smiling. We drew and coloured in 12 different ways we can be kind to others. 

1EP

1RD

2JT

Today we celebrated 'random act of kindness day'. All of the children picked a name randomly and then gave them a compliment. It certainly brightened up our day and left everybody smiling. 

3CL

In 3CL we had a chat about kindness, sometimes a little gesture can mean the world to someone else. The children spent time this morning thinking an creating their own 'hand of kindness'.

5JF

Today the children carouseled around the room to look at another person's writing journal - they thought of kind things to say about that person's work. We also gave out random acts of kindness cards to make the world a better place.

Children's Mental Health Week February 2023

We have celebrated Children's Mental Health Week February 2023 and the theme this year is Let's Connect. Take a look at your child's year group to see the activities we completed to shine a spotlight on the importance of children's mental health. We have showed our children the importance of relationships and how we can make meaningful connections to support our mental health.

Nursery

As part of children's mental health week 2023, the children were asked to think about the people who are special to them and who helps to make them feel happy. After a class discussion, the children were asked to draw a picture of the people they love.

RSB

For children's mental health week this year. RSB talked about meaningful connections. We discussed the relationships we share and what helps us feel connected to each other and the world around us. We decorated strips of paper to remind us how we are all brought together, drawing things that make us feel connected. Some children drew walking in nature with their families, others drew playing football with their team mates and others riding their bikes with their friends. We made paper chains to model how we are all connected to the people and things we care about.

RLH

We have talked about the people we feel connected to and who are important in our lives.

1EP

We have listened to stories about being kind, brave and worried. We have had lots of discussions about how to look after our own mental health, look at ways to improve this and listened to music to calm the mind.

1RD

We have talked about the theme 'Let's connect' and thought about ways we can connect to our bodies, our minds, our families and our friends.

2JT

In 2JT we have discussed all the connections that we have as people and how we can work together to support one another. The children created a puzzle piece to represent themselves and we made a whole class jigsaw puzzle to show how we can connect and form a united team together.

2KS

In 2KS we have been thinking about how positive affirmations and acts of kindness can improve our mental health. We have a class calendar with an idea for each day. As the children are putting their names on our feelings board, we look at the day's affirmation, think about what it means and consider if we can use it to help us.

3CL

The theme asks children to think about the connections in their loves and their importance to their wellbeing. We connected through dance and song and learnt a dance for Jerusalama. Tumelo loved sharing that the song is in her language and she knows the song very well. We remembered this dance is about connecting, collaborating and joining in, not about a 'perfect performance'. We looked at some mental health discussion cards posing questions such as 'To keep our minds healthy, we should watch TV all day' Why? Why not?

We also looked at a BBC initiative called Moodbusters which are fun curriculum based resources to inspire children to get moving for mental health and wellbeing. We enjoyed line dancing with Oti and encouraged children to think one step at a time.

4DM

Each week, year 4 have been trying out a new breathing technique to help us to feel calm and focused. These mindfulness breathing techniques have catchy names and already each pupil has their favourite.

In a recent study, it was found that natural sounds can help make us feel calm and peaceful. We listened to the sound of the ocean; the sound of rain; the sound of wind and the sound of bird song. Year 4 voted the sound of rain as the most soothing and we have been listening to this during our breathing exercises.

Year 5

We have been learning how to check our pulse and how heart rate is affected by how active you are. We have learnt about endorphins and how exercise cam help us to clear our heads and feel better about ourselves.

We spent some time doing some painting while listening to relaxing music and we also did some gardening in the school eco garden. We discussed how being in nature and switching our brains to focus on something can be beneficial and help us to feel connected.

Year 6

We have been thinking about people that are important to us in our lives. The children thought about who that person or people could be both in and out of school. The children discussed who inspired them and why. They made posters relating to the topic of mental health.

World Mental Health Day 2022

The theme for this year, as set by the World Federation for Mental Health, is 'making mental health and wellbeing a global priority' and we're encouraging our children to look after 'number one' when it comes to their mental health.

Take a look at our school activities.

Nursery

Today Nursery read the colour monster and talked about how important it is to talk about how you feel.

RSB

Today the children in RSB have had the opportunity to dance Zumba style. We talked about feel good hormones (endorphins) being released when we exercise and this puts us in a good mood, improves our sleep and our energy levels. The children had a fantastic time and we promoted a very important message to our children – look after your mental health and wellbeing.

RLH

As part of world mental health awareness day we talked about what makes our hearts happy. Here's what we think...

1EP

1RD

Today the children completed 5 different wellbeing activities.

2JT & 2KS

As part of world mental health awareness day we talked about what makes our hearts happy and what is the best part of me!

3CL

Today we talked about how our feelings matter and made a check in bookmark. Each morning I have the opportunity to check in and tell my teacher how I am feeling.

4DM & 4SM

In 4DM & 4SM, we marked World Mental Health Day by creating compliment cards for our friends. Paying a compliment costs nothing and can make the recipient feel happy and confident.

We also watched videos about how little good deeds can make a huge impact on other people. We talked about what to do if we are feeling sad, low or in need of support.

So many pupils wanted to be our Year 4 Wellbeing Champion. Listening to each pitch made us realise how thoughtful, helpful and sensitive the children are.

5JF & 5LC

Today the children did some gardening and bulb planting. We also did some artwork whilst listening to relaxing music and some yoga.

6JS

Today the children took part in a chair triathlon brain break activity. This allowed us to be active and recharge our brains and bodies to help with our learning. Moving allows our bodies to release endorphins, making us feel good.

Mental Health Awareness Week 2022

Mental Health Awareness Week has taken place from 9^th May – 15^th May 2022. The mental health Foundation’s focus has been loneliness this year. Here at Fairfield Road, we teamed up with our local Johnnie Johnson Housing Ltd to help combat loneliness.

Children at school wrote letters, designed and created posters and informative texts to residents in Johnnie Johnson Housing, Clayton, aiming to put smiles on the faces of those who are feeling lonely and isolated. Our aim was to raise awareness of the links between poor mental health and loneliness and provide residents with tips on self-help strategies and services that can help. The residents thoroughly enjoyed looking at our work showcased in the lounge area.

Take a look at our fantastic work!

What's happening in the news?

Please find below some advice that may help you to talk about the events that are currently happening in Ukraine. 

• Help for teachers and families to talk to pupils about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and how to help them avoid misinformation. - The Education Hub (blog.gov.uk) 
• How to Help Students Talk About the News - Educate Against Hate

More general advice can be found here.

• British Red Cross – Relevant Well being Activities, How to Talk about Conflict and Adult Wellbeing Resource
• One of the best is BBC Newsround as the videos and features are constantly being updated

Children's Mental Health Week 2022

From 7-13 February 2022  schools,  youth groups, organisations and individuals across the UK will take part in Children’s Mental Health Week. This year’s theme is  Growing Together.

Growing Together is about growing emotionally and finding ways to help each other grow. Challenges and setbacks can help us to grow and adapt and trying new things can help us to move beyond our comfort zone into a new realm of possibility and potential. However, emotional growth is often a gradual process that happens over time, and sometimes we might feel a bit ‘stuck’.

For Children's Mental Health Week 2022, we will be encouraging children at Fairfield to consider how they have grown and how they can help others to grow. 

Nursery

To celebrate Mental Health Week in school, Nursery have been exploring different emotions as a class. We had lots of lovely group and one to one discussions talking about what makes us happy, sad, excited, scared and angry. Take a look at some of our lovely work this week! 

Reception

During our PSHE session this week, Reception have been looking at how we support each other to grow. We made a hot air balloon and thought about our support network and how this lifts us up if things get tough. This reiterated the fact that with the right support, we can grow together. Take a look at our support balloons.

Year 1

We linked in children's mental health week with our RE lesson this week where we discussed what made a great classmate and how to help others. We finished off with a little SuperMovers dance on self belief to really get those endorphins moving!

Year 2

Year 2 have been looking at the best part of themselves. The children looked at what mental health is, used  sorting cards to see how to improve mental health and the mental health of others and then chose one idea to write and draw. This created some excellent classroom discussions. They then made class flowers to represent what they can do to help their own mental health.

Year 3

We have explored our emotions and how we can grow emotionally. We had group discussions and stuck post it notes at the front with our ideas on. We then competed the sheet all about growing together.

Year 4

Giving a genuine compliment is an amazing positivity boost! Compliments are not only good for the recipients-they're good for the people who give them as well. When you say something complimentary and give someone thoughtful praise, it amplifies self-confidence. Compliments help people to stand and grow taller. You can make someone's day by sharing a positive, genuine compliment. Taking a compliment can be difficult. The best thing to do is smile and say 'Thank You!'

In Year 4, each pupil was given their very own compliment card. Members of the class anonymously filled in the cards. They didn't just write things like 'You're nice' or 'I like you' but wrote more meaningful comments such as: 'You are a kind friend because you always chat to me at breaktime". "You are a funny person because you always tell great jokes." "I've noticed you try so hard in maths even when things are hard or challenging". 

Pupils took their compliment cards home so parents and carers could add a compliment too!

Year 5

In Year 5, we have spent the afternoon learning some relaxation techniques, including taking part in a Yoga session. We did some different stretches and poses as well as some breathing exercises to clear our minds and help let go of some of our stresses!

Also in Year 5, this term we have been litter picking and gardening as part of our ECO work. It makes us feel happy to know we are making a positive difference to our part of the world. We also recognise that gardening is calming and theraputic, which is good for our mental health.

Year 6 

To celebrate Children's Mental Health Week, the children in year 6 have been writing down things they are grateful for and placing them in a gratitude jar throughout the week. This small, but powerful activity helps us to think positively, which is great for developing our wellbeing.

"A 5 minute a day gratitude journal can increase your long term wellbeing by more than 10%"

(Happier Human, 2020)."

Think Equal  

In Reception we follow the 'Think Equal Programme'.

Think Equal is an award-winning global charity and programme which has been fully funded by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and the NHS Mental Health in Education Programme, for every single 4-5-year old across the region.

Greater Manchester is the first UK city-region to take up this award-winning, evidence-based early years programme. As part of Greater Manchester’s recovery from the pandemic, we recognise the impact this has had on our children’s development which is why we are investing more in early years and strengthening our work to ensure our children have the best start on life.

Sixty plus years of Scientific testing and evaluation has been done for SEL generally, proving that acquiring SEL skills in childhood leads to success:

• Better academic prospects. Studies prove a rise in academic marks between 11% and 17% in children who learn these SEL skills in early childhood. Children are also twice as likely to earn a college degree and 50% more likely to graduate from high school, and have a full-time job by age 25
• Having improved social and emotional intelligence means children are more connected at school and likely to do well, and are less likely to be left out or bullied
• Improved attitudes and behaviours as well as school climates, with improved relationships between students and teachers
• Decreases in anxiety, anger, aggression, and increases in positive behaviours and social competence

Each lesson focuses on an element of SEL and often stems from the reading of a SEL focused storybook. Think Equal lessons utilise a variety of learning styles such as discussion, artwork, songs, games and role-play. The children are thoroughly enjoying the sessions and it's a brilliant way to being social and emotional learning to the front of Early Years Education.