Wellbeing, Mental Health and Nurture
What is nurture?
The concept of nurture highlights the importance of social environments – who you’re with, and not who you’re born to – and its significant influence on social emotional skills, wellbeing and behaviour. Children and young people who have a good start in life are shown to have significant advantages over those who have experienced missing or distorted early attachments. They tend to do better at school, attend regularly, form more meaningful friendships and are significantly less likely to offend or experience physical or mental health problems.
The nurturing approach offers a range of opportunities for children and young people to engage with missing early nurturing experiences, giving them the social and emotional skills to do well at school and with peers, develop their resilience and their capacity to deal more confidently with the trials and tribulations of life, for life
Who Benefits…
- Pupils benefit – from the approach that supports them in their specific needs while delivering teaching and learning in a way that all can access. The pupil is at the heart of the school focus and their learning is understood developmentally.
- Parents benefit – from being involved and welcomed in the school, in seeing the improvement in the children’s learning, behaviour, confidence and attendance. A better outcome for their children both in and out of the school and classroom.
- Teachers benefit – from a renewed focus on their pupils and a culture change where every voice counts. A more balanced measure of outcomes for individual pupils ensues.
- Schools benefit – from showing their commitment to developing an ethos and culture that is inclusive supports everyone in and associated with the school
- Communities benefit – from having a school that wants to be at the heart of the community and demonstrates its central role in children and young people’s lives.
Blended Learning
Your child’s well-being is extremely important to us and while we promote nurture within the school setting, we also want to ensure that your child’s well-being is also at the forefront when at home. If you have any concerns regarding your or your child’s well-being, contact the school as soon as possible.
Our Nurture Principles
- We all learn in our own way and in our own time.
In our school family we care for and look after each other.
We understand that behaviour tells us how you are feeling.
In our classroom we want to feel safe.
Use your words to tell us how you feel and what you know.
Things will change and that’s ok!
Hello.
I am Nikki Bugden, Pastoral Support Officer. I have worked at the school since 2008, running the Breakfast Club and as class TA, mainly in Year 6, moving to this nurture role in 2022.
During this time, I have gained accredited qualifications including Autism, Mental Health First Aid, Counselling Skills, as well as, becoming a Rainbows Facilitator and Boxall Coordinator and a Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead.
Here at Deal Parochial we are passionate about the mental health and well-being of all our children, families and staff. We have a dedicated nurture room, where anyone is welcome to come and spend some quality time, feel safe and share any worries or concerns. I am also able to support families by sign-posting to relevant outside agencies, filling in forms and being a listening ear.
We are on our way to becoming a Nurture School and we are committed to ensuring the social, emotional and behavioural needs of all our children are met. Through a whole school approach, we are using the Boxall toolkit to profile pupil’s social and emotional development. This helps all staff in setting appropriate targets to address their individual needs. All staff are trained and know their role in safeguarding
There are also several trained Rainbows Facilitators, who are able to deliver a group programme to children who have experienced bereavement and loss, including through death, divorce or migration.
We have many additional activities and specialist support to improve inclusion, integration and involvement such as, horse riding at Cornilo, forest school, play therapy, counselling, NHS well-being team, Transforming Lives for Good, drumming and tennis lessons.
You can usually find me at the KS1 gate each morning, but can also contact me at bugdenn@deal-parochial.kent.sch.uk or via the school office.
Useful websites:
https://www.youngminds.org.uk/
https://kentresiliencehub.org.uk/
https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/
https://www.rehab-recovery.co.uk/
https://www.rehab4addiction.co.uk/country-wide/drug-alcohol-rehab-kent
