Dear Parents and Carers,

As part of our ongoing efforts in promoting wellbeing for all at Howard Primary, I am delighted to share with you that we have been allocated a wellbeing/mental health worker: Ms Reid-Smith.

Ms Reid-Smith is a qualified educational wellbeing worker and she is part of an organisation called MHST (Mental Health Support Team). MHST works within schools providing additional emotional wellbeing support to children, young people, their families and the school they go to.

In the primary setting, they help by offering:

• 1:1 Parent/carer support
• Managing anxiety (ages 5-11)
• Managing behaviour (ages 5-8)
• Group emotional wellbeing sessions for children
• Online parent workshops

Ms Reid-Smith will visit our school every Thursday morning. If you wish for your child to be referred to this new FREE service please speak to your child’s class teacher or contact me directly:

Phone: 0208 6884216

email: senco@howard.croydon.sch.uk

On 31^st March and April 1st, the children will take part in a school assembly to raise awareness on what we can do to look after our wellbeing. They will be introduced to 5 A Day mental health and wellbeing guide. This guide is centred on 5 characters who talk to the children about one of 5 useful ways to improve wellbeing. The 5 ways are:

1. Connect with Connie: small steps to build up relationships and break down isolation can help to develop resilience in both children and adults.
2. Be active with Akhim: when we use our bodies for physical activity our emotional wellbeing improves. For all children movement is key to learning.
3. Take notice with Nina: helping a child to name feelings and have strategies to manage difficult emotions is the process of self-regulation, a key part of child development.
4. Keep learning with Lenny: gaining pleasure from learning new things, making progress and achieving goals, enhances their self-esteem.
5. Give with Gilbert: connecting with a wide variety of people allows for the development of empathy and compassion.

The children will be invited to take part in a competition. To enter, they will be asked to design a poster/letter /story illustrating what wellbeing means for them and how they look after it. The deadline to enter is: Wednesday Apr 23^rd.

The best 3 entries will each win a copy of the 5 A Day Guide which will be presented in a branded bag together with a pen, a water bottle and a card game. In addition, each winning entry will win a copy of the guide for all their classmates.

5 A Day mental health and wellbeing guide is a programme sponsored by Croydon Council. You can access further information by clicking on the link or scanning the QR code. It is an amazing resource for all the family and it is free to all.

5 a Day Wellbeing Way – Brought to you by the London Borough of Croydon

Your sincerely,

Mrs Pollington

SENCO& Senior Mental Health Lead

We are Nip in the Bud®

You can explore the topics below by clicking on the link.

ANXIETY

Anxiety Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud

DEPRESSION

Depression Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud

EATING DISORDERS

Eating Disorders Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud

TRAUMA

Trauma Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud

BEREAVEMENT

You searched for bereavement | Nip in the Bud

OCD

OCD Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud

PTSD

PTSD Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud

SELF HARMING

Why is my child self-harming? Videos for Parents and Carers | Nip in the Bud