News

A set of free videos introducing the issue of mental health to primary school has been released by BBC Learning.

The series, entitled “When I worry about things” animates the voices of children talking about their own struggles and experiences. It looks at ways to help children deal with a range of mental health issues such as depression, OCD, eating disorders and also addresses bullying. The videos, aimed at children aged eight and upwards, are available via BBC Teach.

BBC Teach’s executive producer Andrew Tomlinson said: “This collection has been created with guidance from clinical psychologists and is designed to support teachers in introducing a potentially challenging subject.

“The idea with this series was to offer a solution by starting the discussion on behalf of the audience, therefore lifting the stigma surrounding them and acting as a tentpole around which issues and solutions could be discussed easily and openly.”

More than ever, schools are experiencing the difficulties of mental health problems – to children, their parents and also to staff. The issue is a particular problem within the North East, in Tyne and Wear alone an average of 15 teenagers a week were admitted to hospital for self-harm during the 2014-15 financial year.

Last year SCHOOLS NorthEast launched Healthy MindEd, a schools-led Commission into mental health issues affecting pupils across the region. The Commission is chaired by Professor Dame Sue Bailey and brings school leaders together with key stakeholders with the aim of developing a fresh approach that is adoptable across all schools.

The commission will also produce a solutions-focused report and action plan that is adoptable by any and all schools in the region, so that there is a more systematic and evidence-based approach to mental health. Once rolled out in the North East, this will also provide a focus for schools across the UK and abroad.