Muschamp Primary School and Language Opportunity Base
Mental Health and Wellbeing
At Muschamp, wellbeing is at the heart of what we do. We strive to promote and support positive mental health and wellbeing for all our staff, pupils, parents and stakeholders. We understand that the needs and demands within a school community are ever changing; however, we are committed to responding to these to ensure that we are always offering the best support for all.
We truly believe that making good academic and personal progress, goes hand in hand with children having an understanding of mental health and promoting and supporting positive wellbeing. We also believe that our actions speak louder than our words; with this in mind, we are constantly striving to embed and improve the things we already have in place, as well as look to develop new ideas and initiatives. As a school, we are extremely proud to have achieved the ‘Wellbeing Award for Schools", which is organised by Optimus Education and the National Children’s Bureau.
Mr Keefe - MHAWB Lead
Outstandingly Happy School!
Challenge Partners Area of Excellence for MHAWB
Challenge Partners Area of Excellence
Mental Health and Wellbeing for all
We are delighted to be awarded the Challenge Partners Area of Excellence for our MHAWB offer for all our children here at Muschamp. Our journey to get to this point has taken many years and lots of hard work from our MHAWB team and everyone in our school.
Please see some of the comments from the report below.
Support for good mental health and well-being is a universal offer for Muschamp pupils and is fully integrated into the life of the school.
Well-being is a priority, and the school cultivates an ethos of belonging for pupils, families and staff. The school’s excellent pastoral provision supports pupils with a social, emotional or mental health need (SEMH).
The school’s well-established programme of pastoral support is recognised as a model of excellent practice across the borough and beyond and has led the school to achieve the ‘Wellbeing Award for Schools’. The assessor wrote that they had seen “…a picture of a staff and a school passionate about supporting well-being.”
There is a collective understanding that all members of staff are responsible for pupil welfare and wellbeing.
Muschamp is proud of its ‘inclusive offer for all’. Early identification of need and rigorous tracking of all groups, ensures that no-one is left behind. Enrichment activities for disadvantaged pupils build confidence and develop new skills.
A committed team of Year 5 and 6 pupils take the role of Mental Health Champions, supporting younger pupils. They demonstrate a good understanding of the qualities needed for their role, citing understanding, respect and an open mindset. “It helps us with relationships outside school too.”
The recent introduction of assistive technologies on Chrome Books, such as visual prompts to support spelling, record speech and activate simultaneous translation, enable SEND and EAL learners to meet learning objectives independently.
Teaching assistants are well deployed across the school, providing targeted support for EAL learners, leading interventions for SEMH pupils and using Makaton to support SEND pupils’ understanding.
All pupils in the school can identify someone they consider a trusted adult. Pupils say they feel valued, and their voices heard. There is support for young carers and those who have experienced bereavement.
Outcomes at the end of KS2 are strong, including for disadvantaged pupils: they show resilience and the confidence to work hard and take risks in learning.
Teachers and a range of therapists support pupils in the Learning Opportunity Base
Pupils at Muschamp are kind, happy and confident.
Parents see the triangulation between, home, school and the child and feel supported – one parent commented that, “compassion is constant”.
PSHE is a strength: pupils participate in learning to help them understand their emotions, how to build their well-being and support that of their peers.
Relationships are strong. Behaviour strategies focus on relational approaches and practice is trauma-informed.
Support on offer
- Mental Health First Aiders – we are extremely proud to say that we have invested in having a large number of staff (including teachers, teaching assistants, midday supervisors and office staff) who have completed a nationally recognised, two-day training course. This helps staff to recognise causes and signs of changes in the mental health and wellbeing of others. This means that they can act upon these quickly and put things in place.
- Listening Lounge – we have a fantastic room set up, where children and adults can chat in a relaxed atmosphere. This is a room which is often used by our Mental Health First Aiders. The children can ask to speak to someone about any worries or feelings they can have in this room in particular.
- ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistants) – at Muschamp, we are lucky to have a fantastic team of teaching assistants who are trained in providing emotional and social skills support to children. We have a dedicated ELSA room too, with lots of fantastic resources. This team is led by Miss Bennett. If you feel your child would benefit from this, please contact one of us.
- Young Carers – we have many children, who for a variety of reasons, are considered to be carers for someone that they live with. As a school, we are so proud of what these children do, but also recognise that it is a big emotional responsibility for them. For this reason, Miss Bennett is our designated ‘Young Carers School Representative’ and works closely to celebrate and support these children.
- Mental Health Champions (MHCs) – this is a group of almost 70, Y5/6 children, who are an absolute asset to our school and are at the very heart of our passion for promoting positive mental health and wellbeing. These children took part in thorough training programme, provided by a company called, ‘One Goal’. Our MHCs are involved in a variety of things during the year, however, they are mostly known for the daily support they provide in classes throughout the school each morning. They help the children to check in on the wellbeing display in each class, listen to the children read, share strategies for regulating feelings, and probably most importantly - they chat to the children and be good role models for positive mental health and wellbeing.
- Morning check in boards – each class has a morning check in board, which is related to something known as, ‘Zones of Regulation’. This is where children can indicate how they are feeling when they arrive in the morning. There is an optimum zone to be in (the green zone), in order to sustain positive mental health and achieve well in school. We teach children that it is normal that they may experience different emotions and feelings, but that it is good to have strategies to ‘regulate’ these feelings. This is something our MHCs are very involved in when they visit classes in the morning. Each class also has a ‘worry box’, where they can pop a note in about any concerns they have. Classrooms have areas where children can sit if they want to relax or calm down too. We also teach calming and relaxing strategies as part of our standard classroom practice and have a greater focus on national wellbeing days and weeks.
- Other provisions - although our aim is to promote the idea of positive mental health, we are really fortunate to have many other things in place within our school, which children can access if needed. Some of these have already been mentioned. We also have a Sensory Room, as well as some other sensory areas, in school. In addition to this, we have access to a wide range of therapists who work within our setting and who we can seek support and advice from.
- Whole community support - we are not just here for the children – we believe in supporting our wider community. With this in mind, please feel free to contact one of us if we can offer you and your families any support, or signpost you in the direction of support.
If you, your child or your family need to explore ways in which we can offer support, then please contact us.
Links and Useful Websites
Creative Education
Winston's Wish - Support with grief and loss
Proper Blokes Club - Support for men with their MHAWB
Useful websites
Useful phone numbers
- HOPE line UK 0800 068 414
- Young Minds Crisis Messenger - provides free, 24/7 crisis support across the UK mental health crisis - If you need urgent help text YM to 85258
- National Domestic Abuse Hotline: 0808 2000 247
- NSPCC Helpline: 0808 800 5000
- SWLSTG Mental Health Support Line: 0800 028 8000
- Local borough CAMHS/ SPA for all Young People Sutton 020 3513 3800
- South London Partnership CAMHS Crisis Line: 020 3228 5980
If you live in Sutton, Merton or Croydon and are aged between 11-25 years old you can access off the record for counselling based services. https://talkofftherecordonline.org/
If you feel that you or anyone you know, is in need of immediate support...
Childline: 0800 1111
Samaritans: 116 123
Samaritans: 116 123
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger please call 999.