The UK’s first Masters for School Leaders of Mental Health

Developing a cadre of school leaders to transform mental health across our education system.

Minds Ahead have designed and are currently delivering the UK’s first Masters in School Leadership of Mental Health and Wellbeing. This unique course is for those leading mental health across their school, college or group of schools.

The Master’s in School Leadership of Mental Health and Wellbeing is part of Minds Ahead’s ongoing partnership with the Carnegie Faculty of Education at Leeds Beckett University.

The first cohort started in October 2018 and will ensure that school colleagues who are taking on the challenging new role of mental health in schools lead are provided with expert support, guidance and leadership development.

This will result in a cadre of Master’s level accredited school leaders, who are already playing a role in transforming mental health within our schools.

The Masters is delivered using a blended learning approach and covers topics such as:
  • Leading Mental Health across the school
  • Leading student resilience across the school
  • Evaluating global perspectives on mental health in schools
  • Critical case review
  • Working with local mental health support agencies
  • Major independent study
School leaders on the programme have the opportunity to complete the hugely popular Mental Health in School’s Quality Award, which was researched and developed by Minds Ahead, as well as attend the annual mental health in school’s knowledge exchange.
The first cohort had school leaders from primary, secondary, special and FE settings. Most of the cohort came from UK state school’s, but there are also several attending from international schools.
This innovative but much needed new leadership development programme is part of Minds Ahead’s commitment to ensuring that our schools become world leaders in mental health.
To apply for this programme, see the entry requirements and to download the course specification please click here
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Priya Mitchell, School Counsellor and Designated Lead, The British School Al Khubairat

“The MA is a course I would recommend to anyone interested in promoting and facilitating a more proactive approach to mental wellness in school.  The opportunity to learn and consider different perspectives and how to apply these to our school to facilitate change is refreshing as is the online discussions with other students on the course.”

Kerry Hill, Headteacher, Eyres Monsell Primary

"The learning and development gained from the Masters has given me the confidence, as a school leader, to try new things to positively enhance my school. Using research, programmes and initiatives from the course has enabled me to think more strategically as well as critically about our school practice around mental health and plan new provisions to further impact on our work.

We are now designing a bespoke curriculum, underpinned by learning from the masters course incorporating resilience, neuroplasticity and cognition theory to support child and learning development across our school. It is genuinely helping to transform our whole school approach."