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School Mental Health Qualification Framework
> Strategic Leadership Expert Level 7

Leadership of School Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Learn how to foster a whole systems approach to improve the mental health and wellbeing of children in their setting.

Who is this for?

Educational leaders with responsibility for mental health who are seeking post-graduate level development and qualification to excel in their impact and career.

Length

1 year – Postgraduate Certificate
2 years – Masters

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Overview

The UK’s first Masters in the Leadership of School Mental Health, now in its 8th year, this established programme has supported many school leaders to transform their setting’s mental health strategies for the benefit of pupils, staff and parents.

The course is ideal for those who lead mental health within their settings, or those aspiring to do so.

Programme Summary
Apply at LBU

Programme summary

Delivery partner

Leeds Beckett University

Length

1 year – PGCert
2 years – Masters

Dates

September 2026

Mental health is everybody’s responsibility, and educational settings play a key role in supporting the mental health of their students. This programme will enable you to lead the promotion of mental health and wellbeing, help your setting adopt strategies which prevent mental illness and improve your support processes for children and young people in them.

As part of your programme, you’ll:

  • Gain an understanding of the evidence of effective mental health for your setting.
  • Apply your knowledge in your role as a school leader
  • Take early steps to improve the mental health of children in your care
  • Learn to adopt a multidisciplinary, whole systems approach to the improvement of mental health and wellbeing
  • Provide an inclusive and enabling environment where every student’s mental health can be supported and strengthened
  • Develop the knowledge, confidence, independence and leadership skills to be able to provide effective mental health support for all your students.
  • Strengthening your self-awareness and reflective skills, you’ll be able to confidently lead on best practice in the support and promotion of student resilience and mental health across your community
  • Develop effective approaches to devising and leading on effective whole school mental health and wellbeing strategies as well as targeted interventions. Your expertise will support pupils, your teaching colleagues and the school’s leadership team

Developing and promoting positive mental health has been shown to have an array of positive outcomes, including improved attitudes to learning, better attendance, lower exclusion and reduced behavioural problems.

Modules

Teachers

Our programme delivery is as follows.

Year 1 – Postgraduate Certificate

  • Module 1 – A whole school approach to mental health A
    The Department for Education are drawing on the evidence base around the whole school approach towards mental health. This module explores these models, looks at their strengths and limitations and enables you as a school leader to decide on the model, or adaptation of a model, which is most suitable and helpful to your setting.
  • Module 2 – Leading resilience across the school
    Explore how resilience is formed in a student by looking at attachment theory, the effect of cognition and the neurobiology of resilience. You will examine ways other schools have tried to develop the resilience of their students, for example, grit, growth mindset and meditation. You will evaluate the ‘trait’ vs ‘learned skill’ of resilience as an argument, audit your own school’s resilience practices and complete an analysis of where your school is in terms of resources, benefits and limitations.
  • Module 3 – Working with local support agencies
    Investigate how best to work with local agencies by evaluating the prevention, support and crisis procedures your school has for mental health. You will look at different evaluation and quality assurance models, try them out for your school and consider the different statutory frameworks that discuss mental health.

Year 2 – Masters

(modules 1, 2 & 3 plus…)

  • Module 4 – Evaluating global perspectives on mental health in education
    Study different cultures, religions and countries to see how different beliefs affect what your students and parents may think about mental health. You will look at the different cultures in your school and apply this knowledge and consider how you may delicately overcome barriers that beliefs can present.
  • Module 5 – A whole school approach to mental health B
    Explore change models, summarising the improvements that you wish to see for your school and apply this to strengthen your school’s strategy towards mental health. You will discover models of whole school change and child mental health implementation models. You will also study models of critical professional reflection, deepening your skills as a leader to identify whole school needs and bring about sustainable change.
  • Module 6 – Critical Case review
    Develop an historical and sociological understanding of mental health and evaluate how this affects current practice, by applying your knowledge to a case study. You will explore models and the application of critical incident techniques from a wide range of fields, including the military, education, nursing, mental health, social work and intercultural studies.
  • Module 7 – Dissertation/Major Academic Project
    You will identify a key area for detailed study and undertake independent research. You will be supported with access to a dissertation module which will cover key themes such as research approaches and techniques, ethical considerations, analysis of qualitative and quantitative data, research findings and evaluation. You will also be assigned a dissertation supervisor throughout the process to support your independent research.

Learning and assessment

Learning

Blended learning: online, plus access to online live tutorials, webinars and discussions all are also recorded for access later

Forum discussions

Feedback from submitted assessments

Academic supervision
(for those on the dissertation module)

Access to academic study skills support and guidance.

Assessment

Each module will be assessed through the equivalent of a 4,000 written piece of work. This may include reports, analysis of current activities, reflective journals and plans for improvement. Some modules are assessed by presentations.

The dissertation module is assessed by a 12,000-15,000 word submission.

Entry

To be eligible for this programme you must:

Work in a leadership position in a school or college. This can be across several schools and includes all types of schools, including early years settings, primary, secondary, FE, hospital schools, alternative provision and special schools.

Work in a role which leads the whole school mental health strategy, or working towards this position and have the opportunity to facilitate change in their setting.

Have time to complete the modules, apply the learning in your setting and complete the assignments.

This programme is open to all who have an Undergraduate Degree.

This is an ideal follow-on from the level 5 School Mental Health Professional Programme, or any Senior Mental Health Lead training programme.

However, the programme can be accessed by any colleague who is working in an educational setting and is leading their mental health strategy.

Entry to Mental Health Qualification
“Good mental health is essential for the wellbeing and success of children and young people, and fostering a positive environment in schools is key to supporting their development. I’m proud to be involved in initiatives such as these courses offered by Leeds Beckett University and Minds Ahead, which provide teachers with the knowledge and tools they need to better understand and address mental health issues in their pupils. These courses not only equip educators with practical strategies for supporting mental health, but they also help build a school culture that prioritises emotional wellbeing and an ethic of care. By investing in mental health education, we’re giving future generations the best possible foundation to thrive, both academically and personally.” Dr Steve Burton Head of Subject, Carnegie School of Education

Fees and funding

Cost: PGCert (1yr)
  • UK £2,890
  • International £3,350
Masters (2yrs)
  • UK £8,670
  • International £10,040

Testimonials and case studies

Kerry Hill Masters
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Kerry Hill

Head Teacher
“On a professional level it gave me new knowledge, skills and understanding and gave me the opportunity to work throughout our school with pupils from 2-18. On a personal level it was a huge achievement for me and one which I am very proud of.”
Antonia Clarke
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Antonia Clarke

Head Teacher
“I saw that what was required was a proactive, visible and effective provision that gave pupils a toolkit of strategies to stay mentally well and removed barriers to accessing timely support when they needed it. I had no idea where to begin and so when I discovered the Masters course I knew that it would give me the expertise, knowledge and confidence to plan and implement a whole school approach. ”
Amber Duxbury
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Amber Duxbury

Teacher & Designated Mental Health Lead
“The program had a profound impact on my school by enhancing the quality and integration of mental health support for both students and staff. It played a crucial role in fostering a more inclusive, supportive, and resilient school culture. By equipping me with advanced leadership skills and a deep understanding of evidence-based strategies, the course enabled me to implement meaningful changes that addressed the diverse needs of our school community.”

FAQs

How long is the course?

1 year to attain a Postgraduate Certificate in Leadership of School Mental Health and Wellbeing
and
2 years to attain a Masters in Leadership of School Mental Health and Wellbeing. 

If you live in England, a Government Masters Loan can help with the course fees when enrolling on the MA.

If you are domiciled in Scotland or Wales a student loan is not guaranteed but it may be possible. Please contact us as soon as possible to discuss this as prior regulator approval is required. If you are domiciled in NI sadly no loan is available.

Download Brochure

Leadership of School Mental Health