Topics for this month:
‘Heads Together’ – Mental health initiative
Too often, people feel afraid to admit that they are struggling with their mental health. The fear of prejudice and judgement can often stop people from getting help and can destroy families and even sadly end lives.
‘Heads Together’ wants to help people feel much more comfortable with their everyday mental wellbeing and have the practical tools and advice to support them and their friends and family.
Heads Together is a mental health initiative headed by ‘The Royal Foundation’ of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, which combines a campaign to tackle stigma and change the conversation on mental health with fundraising for a series of innovative new mental health services.
One in ten young people will experience a mental health difficulty, and many adults with lifetime mental health issues can trace their symptoms back to childhood. By having more mental health services the initiative is working hard to develop effective diagnosis and treatment for mental health.
Significant progress has been made to tackle stigma surrounding mental health in recent decades, but it still remains a key issue driven by negative experiences and language. Through this campaign, the Royal Highnesses have built on the great work that is already taking place across the country, to ensure that people feel comfortable with their everyday mental wellbeing and feel able to reach out and get the support they need through difficult times, so that stigma no longer prevents people getting the help they need.
‘Heads Together’ works in partnership with other organisations such as Mind, The Samaritans, Shout crisis and Calm, who run confidential helplines with counsellor’s and offer various online services staffed by volunteers who can relate to the difficult times you or someone you know may be going through.
After expanding further in 2019, the Heads-Up campaign was launched within Football across the country and spoken to players, fans, and managers about how we can all come together to change the conversation on mental health through Football. The campaign led to the FA Cup Final and a week of activity ensuring that, now more than ever, mental health is at the forefront of the game both for players and fans. It is also to encourage more men to feel comfortable talking about their mental health and feel able to support their friends and families through difficult times, in that is it ok as a man to say how you feel and if you are struggling.
‘Heads Together’ along with the ‘Head up’ campaign, offer lots of resources, tips and advice on how to reach out to help your mental health. You can also get involved and volunteer online.
For more information, please access the website: https://www.headstogether.org.uk
Mental health support for children, young people and adults
Adults aged 26+ in Liverpool now have access to Qwell.io to support their mental health and wellbeing.
Alongside https://www.kooth.com/ which is available for 10-25-year-olds in Liverpool, this service supports wellbeing by providing free, safe and anonymous peer support, self-help resources and online counselling.
Visit the website to sign up and find more information: https://www.qwell.io/
‘Shout out UK’ Prevent animation
Shout out UK, an organisation set up to counter extremism, have created a short animation about the dangers of right wing extremism and online radicalisation.
You can view the animation here: https://twitter.com/Shoutout_UK/status/1381543060316823554?s=20
More information about Shout out UK can be found on their website: https://www.shoutoutuk.org/
Ofsted’s thematic review into Sexual Abuse and Sexual Harassment in independent schools and Colleges
Due to the increasing level of interest in and news coverage of the distressing testimonials posted on the Everyone’s Invited website, Ofsted are undertaking a thematic review into sexual abuse across state and independent schools and colleges.
Read the document here for further information: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ofsted-review-of-sexual-abuse/ofsted-review-into-sexual-abuse-in-schools-terms-of-reference
Sexual abuse, sexual violence and sexual harassment in any form are abhorrent and it is vital that reports of abuse are appropriately investigated and victims supported and protected.
A dedicated NSPCC helpline is now available to support anyone who has experienced sexual abuse in educational settings or has concerns about someone or the issues raised. The dedicated NSPCC helpline number is 0800 136 663 and more information is available at: Dedicated helpline for victims of abuse in schools NSPCC.
It is extremely important that with any safeguarding concerns, JTM’s safeguarding team are informed immediately, following the correct reporting processes so that the appropriate action and support can be put in place.
All staff have a duty of care to safeguard children and vulnerable adults at all times. We have included below a reminder of the following guidance to reiterate your roles and responsibilities when working with children and young people:
Keeping Children Safe in Education: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/912593/Keeping_children_safe_in_education_part_1_Sep_2020.pdf
Working together to safeguard children is very clear on how schools and colleges should work with their local multi-agency children’s partnerships as a relevant agency and how any concerns about a child should be referred.
It is important that we play our role so that our learners’ have the knowledge they need to recognise and report abuse, including emotional, physical and sexual abuse. To support this, a one-stop page has been published for teachers, including non-statutory implementation guidance ‘Plan your Relationships, Sex and Health Education Curriculum’ and teacher training modules, developed with subject matter experts and teachers. Each module covers safeguarding to make sure teachers, pastoral staff and the designated safeguarding lead are equipped to deal with sensitive discussions and potential disclosures.
YoungMinds Crisis Messenger
The YoungMinds Crisis Messenger text service provides free, 24/7 crisis support across the UK. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis and need support, you can text YM to 85258.
YoungMinds know that finding the right support is important, especially if you need someone to talk to right now. They aim to connect every texter to a trained volunteer promptly to provide crisis help. They will listen to you and help you think more clearly, enabling you to know that you can take the next step to feeling better.
It is free and confidential to text the service from the following major networks:
EE, O2, Three and Vodafone.
These include – BT Mobile, Tesco Mobile, Virgin Mobile, iD Mobile, Sky, Telecom Plus, Lebara and GiffGaff. Some Android phones issue a warning that you will be charged for texting YoungMinds, provided you are on one of these networks this warning is incorrect and you will not be charged. If you text them from a network that is not on this list there is a possibility that you may be charged for the messages and that they may appear on your bill, this is because some networks do not provide the capability to message short codes.
For further information: https://youngminds.org.uk/find-help/get-urgent-help/youngminds-crisis-messenger/#youngminds-crisis-messenger
MeeToo App for iOS and Android
MeeToo is a multi-award winning, free, anonymous app where young people can talk about difficult things.
Built on research showing the positive impact of peer support for mental health, MeeToo provides a safe, pre-moderated (by humans) space for young people aged 11+ to experiment with opening up about whatever may be on their mind.
Posts can be responded to by other users, as well as a team of trained university psychology students and MeeToo counsellors who help to guide discussions and ensure that no post goes unanswered.
Moderators check every post and reply before they go live to ensure the safety and anonymity of our users, and our counsellors uphold a sophisticated system for monitoring and tracking potential safeguarding risks.
MeeToo supports over 6,000 young people each month. It is featured on the NHS Apps Library and promoted by more than 1,000 schools in the UK.
You can see how MeToo works here: https://www.meetoo.help/how-meetoo-works
Cyber Safety posters
Police Digital Security Centre (PDSC) is a not-for-profit organisation, owned by the police, who believe that the majority of cyber-crime can be prevented by taking a few simple steps.
PDSC partners, ChildsafeVPN has created a set of useful infographics about cyber-safety aspects of the main social media apps and sites that young people may come across.
The posters are particularly useful for sharing with parents. You can view and download the posters here: https://www.policedsc.com/security-advice/safeguarding
7 Minute Briefings
County Lines: The 7 minute briefing on county lines created by Wirral Safeguarding gives information about what county lines is, how it works, why it matters, recognising vulnerability, what are the signs and what we should do.
Click here for the County Lines briefing
Domestic abuse: The NHS domestic abuse 7 minute briefing explains what domestic abuse is and a number of statistics about those who are victims to domestic abuse to understand how severe it is and therefore why it is important to raise concerns and follow them up using the correct referral channels.
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