Lynne Neagle MS, Cabinet Secretary for Education
On 24 March, I announced new funding of over £1.6m to provide additional mental health and wellbeing support in schools over the next three years.
Working with the Anna Freud Centre, a mental health charity for children and young people, the funding will introduce the Strategies for Safety and Wellbeing programme, to learners in Year 5 and Year 7, to equip them with knowledge, skills and understanding about mental health, safety and how to access support.
Complementing their work, today I am pleased to announce additional funding of £550,000 per year over the next three years to support the introduction of trauma informed practice in schools. This builds on current work being led in schools and on work we pioneered between 2017 and 2020 when we funded the delivery of Adverse Childhood Experience training which was delivered to over 600 schools in Wales
Trauma informed approaches have become increasingly valued as a means of reducing the negative impact of trauma experiences and supporting mental and physical health outcomes. They build on evidence developed over several decades and are increasingly important in school settings to foster safe, stable learning environments. The approach also has wider benefits for engagement, behaviour, attendance, and attainment.
At its heart this approach is about building positive relationships which is central to the work we have pioneered since 2018 as part of our Whole School Approach to Emotional and Mental Wellbeing. The new funding will support and add real value to this work which has already seen almost 97% of all schools actively planning to meet the wellbeing needs of their school community. It also supports the Curriculum for Wales’ Health and wellbeing Area of learning and experience in supporting learners’ emotional and mental wellbeing.
The funding will be channelled through Dysgu, the national professional learning and leadership body for maintained schools and settings. Dysgu’s vision is that every educator in Wales can access high-quality professional learning and leadership support which sparks their imagination and contributes to their professional and personal growth, supporting them to be their best. Its work is centred around inclusive practice, working with and within the sector to help promote mental health and wellbeing, creating the conditions for better, measurable outcomes for learners.
I have asked Dysgu to work at pace over coming months to procure the services of a body with the necessary, skills, experience and ability to deliver a bilingual and equitable offer across all Wales, so that schools and settings can benefit from this support as soon as practically possible.
Investing in the mental and emotional wellbeing of our children and young people is investing in the future. I am confident that this new funding, together with the funding for the Anna Freud Centre and the over £13m we provide to support our whole school approach will make a real difference to the lives and education of our children and young people.