At Red Oaks we take the emotional health and well-being of every child seriously. We believe that the school can help pupils build resilience and support them to be mentally healthy. Our Mental Health and Well-Being policy sets out how we do this.
We all have ups and downs in life but in childhood it can be particularly hard to cope with sad feelings and worries that arise when things are hard or scary. There may be times when your child is unhappy or struggling emotionally. You may notice that they seem low or worried or that their behaviour changes. We may notice that they seem withdrawn or upset at school.
If you are worried about your child's mental health then you are not alone. Many parents and carers have similar worries and stresses. There is good support available from local and national organisations. The sooner you seek help the better for you child and you.
The Park Academies Trust in Swindon has been named the Wellbeing Trust of the Year at this year’s Multi Academy Trust Excellence Awards.
Benedick Ashmore-Short, CEO, The Park Academies Trust said: "We’re so proud of the inspiring work of staff and pupils which has been instrumental in winning Wellbeing Trust of the year at this year’s Multi Academy Excellence Awards."
Spring 2023: The Happy Confident Company
Red Oaks Primary School are excited to be
partnering with The Happy Confident Company
to pilot a whole school social and emotional
literacy programme that will be used as a UK
case study for best in class mental health and
wellbeing programmes.
The whole school is taking part and parents were invited to our launch event on 9th February. Swindon Link write upDownload the poster
Covid and Mental Health
Suporting Parents Helpfinder
Mental Health charity Young Minds have produced a six question survey for parents to find out how to support children during the pandemic. Follow this link to find out more.
Action for Children have launched Parent Talk
4 in 10 parents have been suffering from increased anxiety as a result of the pandemic. It’s scary, but there is help available.
Parent Talk offers free, down-to-earth advice and live chat for parents of children aged 0-19.
What is Mental Health?
The Children’s Society describes mental health as how we feel about ourselves "emotionally, psychologically and socially".We all have mental health - some people have good mental health and some people don't. It is important to remember that mental health can change at any time in our lives.
Mental health is just as important as physical health, and just like our bodies, our mental health can be harmed by many different things, including:
Abuse or neglect
Experiencing trauma through crime or violence
Social isolation
Being bullied or discriminated against
Feeling stressed or under pressure
Living in poverty
Having debts
Losing someone close to you
Having a physical health condition
Losing your job
Having to care for a relative
Substance misuse.
Children’s mental health is especially important, as if young people don't get help with their mental health problems, the issues they're experiencing can stay with them when they get older.
Well-Being and Resilience - what are they?
Well-being and resilience are terms which often come up when discussing mental health. Well-being describes how happy, healthy and satisfied we are. Further information about well-being can be found on the Children's Society website. Resilience is the ability to cope when things go wrong.
Resilience can also be described as:
Bouncing back after difficult time
Dealing with challenges and still holding your head up
Giving things a go or trying your best
Being strong on the inside
Being able to cope with what life throws at you and shrug it off
Standing up for yourself
Not giving up
Just like mental health, resilience isn't fixed. There are many things to help build resilience, such as asking for help, trying again, looking after your physical health and learning from mistakes.
Looking After Your Own Mental Health
In order to support your child, you need to stay strong and well yourself. It isn't easy being a parent or carer especially when you are experiencing problems of your own such as relationship difficulties, money worries, problems with work. Often it helps to talk to someone, so don't be scared about doing this, with friends, family, your GP or a support service. The following organisations can also offer information and advice to help you.
Always remember, it's ok not to be ok. Nobody should feel they have to go it alone.
NSPCC - Mental health advice for parents Lift Swindon - A Swindon service which offers various types of support for a range of different issues including anxiety and low self-esteem Mind - A mental health charity offering advice and support for anyone experiencing a mental health problem Mental Health.org - The Mental health Foundation’s A-Z of Mental Health NHS - a list of mental health charities, organisations and support groups offering expert advice Relate - counselling and advice service for families Counselling Directory - directory of counsellors offering support for families Citizens Advice Bureau - Comprehensive generalist advice to help people with a wide range of problems including benefits, debt and money, employment, housing, immigration, consumer, relationships, discrimination, law and rights, healthcare, education and much more. There is also a full advice service over the telephone 08082 787813 (Calls to this number are free) Money Helper - Impartial money and pensions guidance, backed by the UK Government and free to use. There is also a helpline you can call on 0800 1387777 Swindon and Gloucestershire Mind - 01793 432031 Samaritans - Tel: free confidential listening service 116 123 NHS Choices: moodzone - Helps manage stress, anxiety, depression. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/improve-mental-wellbeing
CALM Campaign against living miserably - Information and help around mental health particularly focussing on men
Live Well Swindon Hub - Offering information, signposting and support to help you make the most of your health and wellbeing
Meet the Well-Being Team
Sara Smith
Assistant Head and SENDCO
Becky Taylor
Pastoral Manager and Designated Safeguarding Lead
Stacey McGahey
PSHE Lead
Rachel Hogan
Year 2 Teacher
Michele Tyler
Admissions Officer
Lindsey Vaughan-Lewis
ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant)
Bonnie Hawkins
ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant)
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Eden Parry
Barnardos Trailblazer/Early Mental Health Practitioner
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DJack Wright
LAB Member for Mental Health
Local services for Children and Young People
The School
Please talk to us about your concerns, so that we can work together to help your child feel better. You can either talk to your child’s class teacher or click here to send Mrs Taylor a message.
Your GP
A GP can check any physical symptoms linked to your child’s health and talk with you about their emotional well-being and make a referral to a specialist service if necessary
The School Nurse
Parents and carers can contact the Swindon School Nursing Service for advice and support on a range of health issues
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)
A free NHS service that assesses and treats 0-18 year olds with emotional, behavioural or mental health difficulties
Kooth
Children and young people aged 11 and over are also able to access support themselves from Swindon Kooth. This provides links to advice as well as online counselling
Mental Health in the Red Oaks Curriculum
At Red Oaks we take Mental Health very seriously and it is covered within our curriculum in a variety of different ways. Our PSHE curriculum follows the Jigsaw scheme. Jigsaw has a strong emphasis on emotional literacy, building resilience and nurturing physical and mental health as part of a whole school approach. Jigsaw lessons also include mindfulness, allowing children to advance their emotional awareness, concentration and focus. For more information about Jigsaw, please click here.
As well as Jigsaw, children in years 4 and 5 use the Strategies for Safety and Wellbeing programme developed by the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families. The programme is designed to increase skills for children around safety, mental health and wellbeing and how to access sources of support. As part of this, children are supported to identify what feels safe/unsafe, recognise, understand and manage feelings, identify coping and help seeking strategies and challenge stigma around mental illness.
What is Mindfulness and what does it look like at Red Oaks?
Mind.org.uk describes mindfulness as a technique you can learn which involves making a special effort to notice what's happening in the present moment (in your mind, body and surroundings) - without judging anything. It has roots in Buddhism and meditation, but you don't have to be spiritual, or have any particular beliefs, to try it.
It aims to help you:
become more self-aware
feel calmer and less stressed
feel more able to choose how to respond to your thoughts and feeling
cope with difficult or unhelpful thoughts
be kinder to yourself
Mindfulness is practised in every class at Red Oaks in a variety of different ways. This includes mindful breathing, positive reflections, visualisation, following mindfulness activities on the Cosmic Kids You Tube channel, yoga and many others.
Dr Pooky Knightsmith
Dr Pooky Knightsmith is an internationally respected expert in child and adolescent mental health. Pooky has a PhD in child mental health from the Institute of Psychiatry, is the author of five books and is the current vice chair of the Children and Young People's Mental Health Coalition.
Passionate about giving all young people the support they deserve, Pooky works tirelessly to ‘be the change she wants to see’. A prolific keynote speaker, lecturer, trainer and author, she develops and shares practical, evidence-informed approaches to promoting mental health - arming health and education staff with the skills, inform444ation and knowledge they need to support the children in their care; whilst also working hard to drive collaboration and change at a national and international level amongst politicians and charity, business and service leads.
The following organisations provide reliable information and advice to help parents/carers to support heir child when experiencing emotional difficulties.
General Young Minds - Talking to your child about mental health – Advice for starting conversations about mental health with children and young people NSPCC: Mental Health - Childline campaign "We all Feel It", which support young people, particularly males, struggling to reach out for mental health support. Kids Helpline - Australian website with many useful resources to support a wide variety of issues Family Lives - charity providing help and support for a wide variety of family topics The Children's Society - variety of resources and advice about mental health 0-25 years Young Minds - Help for Parents
Information about all aspects of child mental health, including a Parent Helpline 0800 802 5544 (9.30am – 4pm, Monday – Friday) Talking Mental Health with Young People at Secondary School -
Advice for parents and carers of primary aged young people Self-Care - Top Tips for Young Parents and Carers
Advice for taking care of your own and child’s wellbeing Childline - Lots of information and tips for children of all ages about feelings and difficult situations Minded for Families - Free learning resource about mental health for parents and carers including Parenting in a Digital World Happy Maps - Lots of information about health topics including mental health, organised under different age groups i.e under 5s primary age, secondary age, young adults. Includes information about parenting children with ADHD, autism, school anxiety, problems with food, self esteem and many more Charlie Waller Trust - Leaflets on a range of topics to support your family's mental health
Shout - 24/7 text messaging help service for parents. Text SHOUT to 85258 for free, anonymous and confidential support. Open to anyone in the UK and won't show on a phone bill. Child in Mind - Expert led podcasts to help parents understand and manage child and family mental health problems
Self-Esteem Young Minds - parent's guide to supporting children with self-esteem The Children's Society - information, tips and videos about self-esteem Kids' Health - information about self-esteem
Resilience Positive Psychology - information and advice about building resilience in children Bright Horizons - information and strategies for building resilience in children
Mindfulness Cosmic Kids - yoga designed specifically for children Go Noodle - games to encourage active movement and mindfulness Breath Meditation - You Tube video introducing children to mindful breathing
Anxiety Young Minds - School anxiety and refusal - information from Young Minds Young Minds - information and advice about supporting a child with anxiety Child Mind Institute - tips for helping a child with anxiety The Anxious Child - booklet for parents about anxiety in children (produced by The Mental Health Foundation) Anxiety UK - information and advice for parents about anxiety in young people
KS2 -3 Transition Room 627 - Room 627 is a website project for children and families around transition from Y6 to Y7.
If you have a pastoral concern about your child and wish to contact Mrs Taylor, in confidence, please use the form below
We hope you find our site informative and interesting and welcome feedback at any time. If you would like to visit the school please do not hesitate to contact the school office any time.
If you require paper copies of any information on our website, please ask at the office.
Red Oaks Primary School, Redhouse Way, North Swindon Learning Campus, Swindon SN25 2AN
Tel: 01793 493920 Email: office@redoaks.org.uk
Red Oaks is strongly committed to protecting and safeguarding children
and expects all staff and volunteers to embrace this commitment.
At Red Oaks we take the emotional health and well-being of every child seriously. We believe that the school can help pupils build resilience and support them to be mentally healthy. Our 
Dr Pooky Knightsmith is an internationally respected expert in child and adolescent mental health. Pooky has a PhD in child mental health from the Institute of Psychiatry, is the author of five books and is the current vice chair of the Children and Young People's Mental Health Coalition.