Those with mental health needs are the children most likely to miss school. These children have the highest ‘unauthorised absence’ rate, meaning they could be at risk of harm.
Child poverty in particular is not just a short-term risk to mental health: it has an effect throughout life. Poor families are often least informed about the ways in which the children can be helped.
For children facing some of the greatest barriers to a good education, such as those with learning disabilities and autism, the use of restrictive interventions and exclusions cause significant and lasting harm to mental health.
Poor mental health can result from experiences of racism, bullying, exclusion and injustice, and mental health support in schools and colleges need to be able to offer the opposite to these experiences.
We offer a masters award to school leaders and a Mental Health Specialist postgraduate diploma to colleagues who support pastoral care. Both qualifications are studied online while working so that the knowledge and skills learnt are applied immediately within their setting and tailored to that establishment’s needs. Our partnership with Leeds Beckett University, via the Carnegie School of Education, ensures all leaders and staff are taught by specialist education academics, well-versed in the latest research and thinking.
We provide mental health training in schools and colleges, help local authorities and charities develop mental health strategies. Our qualifications complement the support that is available in local areas. School and college leaders and staff will be empowered to support the mental health needs of the whole school community including developing knowledge of other local mental health services and clinicians.
We have extensive experience in delivering school mental health events and speeches to a diverse range of colleagues across the UK and abroad. We can provide expertise on mental health in schools to small groups of senior level leaders as well as conference size events.
We design and develop professional learning events and programmes by combining the latest thinking on mental health in education along with expertise in professional learning. We have extensive experience working with schools and come from adult and child mental health as well as psychology, child protection and social work backgrounds.
We support student's mental health by extending the options of support available to your students with our level 2 qualification, suitable for 16-18 year olds. The Mental Health Peer Mentor programme can be delivered by a member of staff at your school or college or by us, online.
We offer bespoke consultancy in our specialist field of primary, secondary and college students’ mental health.
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Minds Ahead Community Interest Company, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London, EC1A 2BN, United Kingdom. Company registration number 10795912
