At Burnt Tree Primary School, we recognise that all our pupils, staff and families can have mental health and well-being needs. We believe that it is paramount to promote a sense of belonging in a supportive environment. 

As part of our commitment to ensuring we take mental health and well-being into consideration in all aspects of school life, we work towards ensuring that: 

• We respect that everyone needs to take care of their mental health and well-being and that some of us may need more support than others.
• Pupils and staff acknowledge that mental health is as important as physical health. 
• Having a healthy body through a nutritious diet and regular exercise, can improve mental health and wellbeing. 
• Everyone feels able to seek help and advice. 
• We all work together to support others. 

Click on the link below to see a copy of our Children's Mental Health Offer document.

At Burnt Tree Primary, staff have appropriate training in order to identify any of our pupils that require additional support for their mental health and wellbeing.

In order to support our pupils, staff and the wider school community, several staff members make up the Mental Health and Wellbeing Team.

Mrs Bryant – Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader

Mrs Bryant’s role is to oversee the help the school gives to pupils with mental health needs, help staff to spot pupils who show signs of mental health problems, offer advice to staff about mental health and to refer children to specialist services. Mrs Bryant’s role includes putting whole school approaches in place, ensuring a coordinated approach to supporting mental health and wellbeing across the school.

Miss Gamwell – Family Support Worker and Designated Safeguarding Lead

Miss Gamwell’s role is to support you and your children to get the best from the school by providing support, advice and information. If you are unsure of where to go for help, then she can point you in the right direction. You can talk to Miss Gamwell confidentially, and she will aim to support you in the following ways: provide direct and confidential support, offer home visits, provide impartial information about local services, and support parents/carers to understand their children’s learning development. She also helps to monitor school attendance with the attendance officer, mentoring pupils for various wellbeing issues and provides general school information. Miss Gamwell also supports  Nursery staff on new starter home visits, supports with transition, signposts and refers to multi-agencies, supports and guides parents/carers through the Early Help process and is an advocate for parents/carers.  She also organises and works with the school council.

Mrs McAardle – Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo)

Mrs McAardle is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the school’s SEN policy. The SENCo co-ordinates additional support for pupils with special educational needs and liaises with their parents, teachers and other professionals who are involved with them. The role of SENCo is crucial for schools in supporting early identification and intervention for children with special educational needs and will be a useful contact for parent/carers who have any concerns about their child’s development. Mrs McAardle oversees the day-to-day operation of the school’s SEN policy, supports the identification of children with special educational needs and co-ordinates provision for children with SEN.  She liaises with parents of children with SEN, other providers, outside agencies, educational psychologists and external agencies, particularly for children receiving support.  Mrs McArdle ensures that the school keeps the records of all pupils with SEN up to date.

Below is a link to the only UK charity dedicated to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of teachers and education staff in schools, colleges and universities.

Burnt Tree Primary School has been awarded the Sandwell Well-being Charter Mark.

Click on the link below to see the award.

Sandwell Reflexions

We are now working in collaboration with Reflexions (Mental Health Support Team) in order to support the emotional wellbeing needs of our children. Mental Health Support Teams are part of the government's commitment to increasing access to mental health support. 

The support will be delivered in a number of ways in line with criteria. Parents, if you have any questions, please speak to Miss Gamwell and/or Mrs Bryant.