Building emotionally healthy schools

It was organised by the Therapy and Social Change Network, which has launched a campaign calling on the UK government to ensure that, by the time young people leave secondary school, they are equipped with the emotional and interpersonal skills to navigate adulthood.

We all know that childhood is a key period of anyone's life, with a significant impact on subsequent development. Making sure that all children have access to the resources and support they need is beneficial for everyone, and schools need to provide an environment that enables this.

In September 2024, we launched a campaign, as part of our Psychology Matters programme, to fight for an inclusive education system, which calls on the government and local authorities to address urgent workforce shortages and enable and sustain an inclusive education system. 

The aims of our campaign overlap significantly with the one linked to the event, so I was delighted to be able to speak about the work that we've done so far.

Psychological professionals already work across the health and care and education systems to support mental health and wellbeing, but there is work to be done to improve communication between system partners, ensuring joined-up working and a shared set of principles.

Every school or college should adopt a whole school approach to promoting emotional health and wellbeing. Staff working in schools should have access to a wide range of training and support and access to regular continuing professional development.This would enable greater understanding and awareness of individual differences and barriers to learning, enabling teachers and support staff to design and adapt a learning environment that suits all pupils' needs.

Ultimately, education settings should be places that provide all students with what they need to fulfil their potential, as well as a safe place to learn and grow, where all children feel valued. 

The education system should prioritise social-emotional learning, placing greater focus on social, emotional, and life skills, so young people are moving into the rest of their lives with the skills to become confident participants in their own communities.

To achieve this, we are calling for every school to have a named educational psychologist based in its local authority, providing services free at the point of delivery, and an increased focus on retaining the educational psychologists we do have.

We would also like to see a holistic review of the positioning of SEND within the wider education system, to encourage a greater focus on early intervention and preventative support for children and their families, moving us towards a truly inclusive education system.

These are the core arguments of our campaign, and I enjoyed the opportunity to be able to make them to other mental health leaders on the panel, as well as an audience including teachers and students themselves. 

It was heartening to hear from the other contributors and see how the campaign we are running at the BPS sits alongside other organisations' work, and how creating a better and more inclusive school environment for young people is such a priority.