Why we need to work harder to ensure every child starts life on a level playing field when it comes to Mental Health.

A Thread

Primary school children who experience difficulties with negative mental health find it hard to participate in activities and discussion and have problems forming positive, beneficial relationships.

If a child suffers with a mental health disorder, they are more likely to go on to:
- Less successful academic achievement
- Commit crime
- Partake in risky sexual behaviour
- Form unhealthy relationships
- Remain unemployed in adult life.
- End their own lives.

The fundamental links between poverty & mental health problems are evident.
Children and adults living in households in the lowest 20% income bracket in Great Britain are 2-3 times more likely to develop mental health problems than those in the highest. ( http://Mentalhealth.org )

Children who are from difficult social, economic and emotional backgrounds need additional support so that we can begin to narrow the inequalities in mental health issues.

In 2016-17, there were 4.1 million children living in poverty in the UK. That’s 9 children in the average classroom. These children are in our schools and desperately need our support. ( http://CPAG.org )

How can we help?

The child poverty action group produced this infographic explaining how children living in poverty can feel about themselves.

Solving these problems is not something one teacher can achieve. But we can supporting children through consistent & caring techniques.

For children who feel excluded or worthless, we can make our classrooms a place where they have a role, where they feel valued. Let them know the classroom would not be the same without them.

For those whose days begin with anxiety about what they’re leaving behind at home, start every day with openness, a smile, warmth and encouragement. Find out how they can be helped with transitions.

Let them know you want to help reduce the worries, not add to them.

Stamp out bullying and judgment immediately. Don’t let an atmosphere of hate and unease fester, the right to a classroom is for every child, so is the right to be who they are unashamedly.

For those children whose basic needs aren’t met at home, try (where possible) to provide them at school. Have they got a water bottle? A snack? Lunch? Did they get enough sleep? Chance to play?

Never give them a ceiling. What better way to model aspirations/dreams than to have them for the children in our care? If they know you think they’re beyond boundaries, they might just start to believe it for themselves.

Teachers can’t solve poverty not develop a positive mental health culture singlehandedly, but with a government that doesn’t seem to find it a huge concern, classrooms inevitably take on the extra work once again.

The good news is there are glimmers I’d hope.
The shifts are changing, authors like @TomPercivalsays and @EmmaYarlett are creating books that offer conversation starters, schools are beginning to think deeply about how they can care for the mental health of their children.

For me it boils down to this, in many cases:

If a child feels safe, their mental health improves.

If a child feels cared for, their mental health improves.

If a child feels they can talk, their mental health improves.

Our country is in crisis, our classrooms are full. But they are also full of children whose minds are delicate seeds we must nurture in order to allow them to grow to their full and healthy potiential.

#MentalHealthAwareness #MentalHealthMatters #ItsOkNotToBeOk