Safeguarding Emotional Wellbeing Support
We fully recognise that supporting a student's emotional wellbeing is a prerequisite for a young person to learn, make progress and become a success in their lives. To this end, we have developed measures to support our students' wellbeing at every stage of their academic development.
All students will struggle with one form of emotional upset or another throughout their formative years and will struggle to varying degrees.
We provide tiered support to match the need of the student and promote their emotional wellbeing:
Tier 1: Form Tutor and Heads of Year
We consider every Cottesloe School member of staff to be a member of the pastoral team. From form tutor to the teacher, Head of Year or member of Senior Leadership we all prioritise the role of ensuring our children are well looked after and their emotional needs are catered for. It is, however, the form tutor who develops a firm professional relationship with each of their tutees. Tutors are there to support the day to day emotional wellbeing of their tutees all under the watchful eye of hugely experienced Heads of Year.
Tier 2: TEAM Hub (Together Everyone Achieves More)
TEAM Hub, under the guidance of Miss Phillips, has developed to become the envy of secondary schools in this area and a model that many are now trying to emulate. TEAM Hub supports the emotional wellbeing of our young people at the point when the Head of Year identifies further support intervention is necessary. Students are supported through interventions such as anger management, stress management, through the twice-daily drop-in sessions or through professional counselling which is delivered by a dedicated staff of fully qualified counsellors.
Tier 3: CAMHS
CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service)
CAMHS offer assessment and treatment when children and young people have emotional, behavioural or mental health difficulties. Children and young people and their families can be referred to CAMHS if children are finding it hard to cope with family life, school or the wider world. If these difficulties are too much for family, friends or GPs to help with, CAMHS may be able to assist. Types of problems CAMHS can help with include violent or angry behaviour, depression, eating difficulties, low self-esteem, anxiety, obsessions or compulsions, sleep problems, self-harming and the effects of abuse or traumatic events. CAMHS can also diagnose and treat serious mental health problems such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
How can a young person see CAMHS?
There are different ways to get an appointment with CAMHS. The most common is via your child's GP. Alternatively, if one of our counsellors deems it necessary, we can support a referral to CAMHS with parental support.