Question

What additional provision has been put in place to support the mental health and wellbeing of 15-18-year olds in the Borough whose education and exams have been particularly badly disrupted during the Covid lockdowns?

Question

What additional provision has been put in place to support the mental health and wellbeing of 15-18 year olds in the Borough whose education and exams have been particularly badly disrupted during the Covid lockdowns?

Answer

The Covid pandemic has affected the lives and education of children and young people across the Borough and we have been working with schools and settings on providing the right resources and information via the schools hub to support staff and student emotional health and wellbeing.

Whilst all secondary schools will have different arrangements to support the wellbeing of their students as part of their pastoral care responsibilities, we have invited all schools to training sessions developed under the Wellbeing for Education Return roll out.

This training, designed to enable schools to use psychological education to better manage the impact of coronavirus has been developed by the Anna Freud Centre, Mind Education, the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the Department for Education and Health Education England. The Wokingham Educational Psychology Service and School Improvement Service have reviewed the materials and shared this bespoke package for use within Wokingham settings.

This term our teams have come together again to deliver further sessions to senior members of staff in settings so that they can support their students focussing on specific areas such as Bereavement and Loss; Supporting Recovery from Anxiety and Low Mood; and Trauma in the Context of Covid-19.

In addition, the LA in partnership with the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has commissioned Kooth, which is a free, safe and anonymous online counselling support for young people aged between 10 and 25. Many schools and settings will also access ARC Youth Counselling in Wokingham, or make referrals to the AnDY clinic which offers assessments and treatment for children and young people experiencing anxiety disorders and depression.

We also have training for individual schools.