Wellbeing at Fairley House
We understand wellbeing and positive mental health is paramount for everyone, but especially young people, who may well find things tough during their formative years.
Our school values of Kindness, Respect and Resilience instil in our students the importance of taking an active role in boosting their own and their peers’ wellbeing, while we have a robust programme in place to support them every step of the way.
We empower our students through initiatives like our weekly Wellbeing Warriors in the Junior Department and weekly Wellbeing Advocates in the Senior Department and break time buddies to talk, play and socially integrate anyone who is on their own who doesn’t want to be. We empower the voice of our students through weekly drop in sessions with a member of the Staff Leadership Team, as well as opportunities to sit on the School Council and Student Leadership Team.
Increasing children’s wellbeing significantly boosts their attainment and learning outcomes
Miss Isobel Moore, Emotional Literacy and Support Assistant (ELSA)
Our approach to wellbeing
We take a whole school approach to promoting positive wellbeing and mental health through a range of approaches:
- Our in-house therapeutic team, Educational Psychologist and ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) provide expert 1:1 support
- We deliver assemblies that focus on mental health and wellbeing
- We celebrate theme days such as Mental Health Awareness Day
- Weekly PSHEE lessons cover topics such as Me and My Relationships, Being My Best, and Keeping Myself Safe
- We offer a range of extra curricular clubs that promote mindfulness including running and yoga
- We actively promote a Growth Mindset within all students
- We deploy the Zones of Regulation to support and develop students’ resilience and self-regulation strategies.
We recognise the vital role that parents (and other relatives) play in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of children. Hence, we host regular Coffee Morning talks to offer advice and guidance to our parents. It also provides an informal environment for our Fairley families to meet and get to know each other.
Recent Coffee Morning topics have included Executive Function, Sleep Hygiene, Anxiety and Friendships and Social Communication Difficulties.
Growth Mindset
Students who believe their talents and abilities can be developed through hard work, dedication and persistence are said to have a ‘growth mindset’. In contrast a student with a ‘fixed mindset’ believes their basic qualities like talent and intelligence are fixed traits and hard work will not change this. Students with a fixed mindset may struggle to reach their full potential because they may lack resilience faced with challenges.
We support our students to develop a growth mindset by encouraging them to embrace mistakes, re-frame their thinking, rewarding achievements and encouraging them not to give up.
‘The Power of Yet’ is a core concept in developing a growth mindset and a phrase we encourage all our students to use because they all have the capacity to learn and improve.
Zones of Regulation
The Zones of Regulation is a social emotional curriculum and regulation program developed by Leah Kuypers. Through a range of visual prompts, strategies and key phrases and vocabulary, it helps students increase their self-awareness and social and emotional skills.
Sleep Hygiene
Sleep hygiene refers to having a regular night-time routine to improve the quality of sleep. Achieving a good night’s sleep will boost mood, reduce stress (which is physically damaging to the body and brain) and help ease symptoms of anxiety and ADHD.
Poor sleep can masquerade as ADHD as it results in inattention, impulsivity and forgetfulness, amongst other symptoms.
Sleeping well will improve your child’s behaviour and attainment.
Mindfulness
Reading, meditating, listening to music or a podcast are examples of mindful activities that could be helpful ways to settle before bed.
When trying to fall asleep anxious thoughts can stop us getting there and affect how restful our night will be. A good way to combat this is to write down worries, use worry drawers or worry dolls.
Support websites and helplines for young people
These organisations exist to support young people’s physical and mental health with dedicated professionals who want to help.
Young Minds
YoungMinds is the UK’s leading charity committed to improving the emotional wellbeing and mental health of children and young people. just as people’s bodies can become unwell, people’s minds can become unwell too. Mental health problems are more common than you. Ignite think. Three children in every classroom have a mental health problem. Young Minds offer information to young people and children about mental health and emotional wellbeing. If you need to talk, they can let you know about organisations that listen, plus they offer online support info.
Kooth
Kooth provides free online support for young people. Kooth counsellors are online Monday-Friday, 12 noon – 10pm and weekends, 6pm-10pm. You can speak to counsellors, read articles written by young people, get support from the Kooth community, write in a daily journal. XenZone is a provider of online mental health services for children, young people and adults. Kooth from XenZone, is an online counselling and emotional wellbeing platform for children and young people, accessible through mobile, tablet and desktop and free at the point of use.
ChildLine
ChildLine is the UK’s free helpline for children and young people. It provides a confidential telephone counselling service for any child or young person with a problem. It comforts, advises and protects. So, if you are worried about anything big or small don’t bottle it up. It can really help if you talk to someone. If there is something on your mind, ChildLine is there for you. You can visit the ChildLine explore section for advice and information on a range of topics. Also you can get support on the online message boards. ‘Everyone helps each other out and is going through the same things as me – it’s a really welcoming place’
Free phone 0800 1111
The Mix
The Mix provide free, confidential telephone helpline finding young people the best help whatever the problem. Provides free connections to local or national services and can text information to callers’ mobile phones
Freephone 0808 808 4994 (7 days a week 1pm-11pm)
Samaritans
Samaritans volunteers listen in confidence to anyone in any type of emotional distress without judging or telling people what to do.
Call: 116 123 (24 hours a day 7 days a week)
FRANK
FRANK provides confidential information and advice for anyone concerned about their own or someone else’s drug or solvent misuse.
Freephone 0300 123 6600 (24 hour service, free if calling from a landline and won’t show up on the phone bill, provides translation for non-English speakers).
B-EAT Youth Helpline
B-EAT youth helpline provides online community information, help and support for anyone affected by eating disorders, anorexia, bulimia or any other difficulties with food, weight or shape.
Call: 0808 801 0711 (Monday – Friday evenings from 4.30pm to 8.30pm and Saturdays 1.00pm to 4.30pm.
Kidscape
Kidscape are the first charity in the uk established specifically to prevent bullying and sexual abuse. The website offers advice and practical skills on how to deal with bullying. Remember no-one deserves to be bullied. Nearly everyone is bullied at some time in their lives; by brothers and sisters, neighbours, adults or by other children/young people. If you are being bullied you may feel scared, vulnerable and quite alone but you owe it to yourself to try and sort out the situation so that the bullying stops.
It Gets Better Project
It Gets Better Project is an internet based project created to inspire hope for young people facing harassment. A place where young people who are lesbian, gay, bi or trans can see clips of other people’s coming out stories.
Bullying UK
Bullying UK provides support for children and parents who have had to deal with bullying, including bullying in the workplace. There are confidential helplines, parenting advice videos, forums and parenting courses.
Anxiety UK
Anxiety UK help with dealing with different forms of anxiety and what leads to it. A support network offering advice for overcoming anxiety.
OCD UK
OCD UK’s vision is to guide anyone who is affected by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
The Depression Alliance
The Depression Alliance is a charity helping to bring people out of isolation and depression and to brig people together who have experienced depression.
Selfharm UK
Selfharm UK is a national self harm network dedicated to self harm recovery and support.
Papyrus
Suicide is something that Papyrus takes seriously and wants to reach out and support people who have suicidal feelings.
Support for Parents and Carers
These websites and helplines exist to support parents and carers of young people who are experiencing mental health challenges. It is important to reach out for advice and support when you are able to.
MindEd
MindEd is a module especially for families, parents and carers who are looking for advice and tips about children’s mental health alongside existing modules for professionals.
Parent Zone
Parent Zone offering digital tips information for wellbeing of children and parents around schools, healthy lifestyles and money.
Parental Support Group
Parent support group – helpline and advice for when parenting becomes challenging.
Family Lives
Previously parentline, Family Lives respond when life becomes complicated and provides support around family breakdown, aggression in the home, bullying, risky behaviour and mental health concerns of both parents and children. Online forums and parent courses.
Wellbeing is attained by little and little, and nevertheless is no little thing itself
Zeno of Citium
Useful Resources for Home
This is a list of resources we have found useful to promote wellbeing and reduce anxiety, some of which we deploy here at Fairley House.
Please note Fairley House can’t be held responsible for any of the third-party content or items we have linked to below.
Here are a number of podcasts aimed at parents containing useful tips, strategies and support for raising neurodivergent children:
- TILT Parenting with Debbie Reber
- ADHD Essentials with Brendan Mahan
- Respectful Parenting: Janet Lansbury Unruffled
- The Nurtured Heart Approach®
Here are some product ideas which can help reduce anxiety and boost mindfulness, routine and gratitude:
Here are some books which are designed to variously help self-esteem, self-confidence, and expressing and regulating emotion:
- Don’t Worry, Be Happy by Poppy O’Neill
- You’re a Star: A Child’s Guide to Self-Esteem by Poppy O’Neill
- Be Strong: You Are Braver Than You Think by Poppy O’Neill
Our School
London’s leading day school for children with specific learning differences
Get in Touch
30 Causton Street
London
SW1P 4AU
Call: 020 7976 5456
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