HealthUnlocked is joining together with UK charity, The Shaw Mind Foundation, to call for compulsory mental health education in schools across the UK.
An overwhelming majority of British parents say protecting their children’s mental health is one of their top concerns and that children should be taught more about mental health issues at school, according to a survey. Yet mental health education is not compulsory in schools.
Please help us to support the HeaducationUK campaign by signing this petition and reach the required 100,000 signatures by Wednesday 3 May.
Talking about the new partnership, our CEO, Jorge Armanet, said: “We believe that raising awareness around mental illness and ensuring everyone has access to support is absolutely fundamental. We are delighted to formally back HeaducationUK, educating all young people about mental health within schools. By sharing more experiences and knowing how to support one another we can break isolation and improve lives for millions of people.”
A YouGov poll of almost 1,000 British parents with children 18 and under found that:
- 80 per cent said protecting their children’s mental health was a top concern
- 79 per cent agree that children should be taught more about mental health in schools
- 57 per cent said their family has been affected by mental health issues
- 45 per cent agreed that in general, schools are failing to look after the mental health of children
Posted to my community and several people already signed. I hope there will be enough signatures on time.
I am more than happy to sign and share. As a retired school nurse the majority of my work involve mental health support of children and young people, either with pre exsisting conditions or poor mental health due to family circumstances or bullying. There are not enough resources supplied to support schools. PSHE was removed from the curriculum and most teachers are not trained to teach these subjects. I took many courses to provide support to schools but other things are prioritised.
This is so important. Before my diagnosis I taught PSHE at a Pupil Referral Unit and always spent a term teaching about the importance of maintaining Positive mental Health. All of my pupils knew someone with a mental health issue and were relieved to be able to discuss issues concerning them. Mental health will not look after itself. Young people need to recognise when there is a problem and where to go to for help and support. I'm 100% behind this.
I teach and I think people underestimate the pressures put on teachers to educate students and support students for EVERYTHING.
A legislation to put in on the curriculum is not the answer, more resources are not the answer. Schools need to have qualified health professionals, in school funded to support students. My school uses education funding to train staff to techniques to teach students with anxiety, we spend money on private educational psychologists to work with students, we spend money on a councillor. This is because we have an issue with it as a barrier to progress. This money is not given to the school for this purpose but due to lack of funding it has to be redirected from the classroom.
Some politician saying "schools must teach about this" and winning support and probably votes won't change a thing until the politicians realise that the teachers who are teachers can't solve all the problems of the youth. That they need nurses, councillors etc working in schools with students. They need the funding to provide that.
Please stop asking teachers to mend everything!
(I believe in the problem, I want a solution but I want the right solution that will work not a pretend solution)
How your post resonates with me. I taught in secondary school all my life. I was trained to teach my subjects. I needed other trained experts to do this sort of stuff.
Just have to say as a one time teacher myself, of 20 years in secondary mostly, whilst I understand children do suffer from mental health issues and need help, I heartily agree with nandeb21. The curriculum has been bombarded with the ills of the world and teachers have been expected to deliver the answers with no training and shockingly no time to prep either. I once turned up to do a cover for a colleague, who had left work on bereavement and how to deal with it. There was no alternative lesson provided and my arrival at the class was the first that I knew of it. On other occasions, I was expected to deliver lessons through PSHE, on the effects of alcohol, drugs etc. On many occasions the lesson was delivered to my pigeonhole the morning of the lesson, which commenced at 9.05, so approx 20 mins to read.
Despite our constant requests for experts in the field to speak, training did not happen for staff with regard to these issues, we were constantly told, no money available. Teachers cannot mend everything!! I agree wholeheartedly and also about the pretend solution.
I'm very passionate about mental health issues.I fully endorse any attempt aimed at educating children on mental health.However I require to know one or two things about the program.
1. What will the carriculum be like?
2. Who will do the teaching?
3.Will it be the already overburdened teachers in our schools.?
Sadly at this time I'm unable to agree with compulsory mental health education is schools. The words "Mental Health" carry such a wide spectrum of disorders the exact cause of which is still unknown. Further research is greatly needed. Depression for example comes in so many different guises. I personally have suffered with depression, but not the serious kind like bi-polar, mine has been managed and controlled with medication.
I have always believed there is a strong link between those who suffer with depression and alcohol related drinking conditions. Some people may seek to self-medicate with alcohol in order relieve the condition and lift the gloom, but sadly in doing so they only make the condition worse, as we all know that alcohol is in its self a depressant. If this condition is then aloud to continue, then other more serious medical conditions are allowed to develop.
No body seems to put two and two together and see the situation for what it is. Those people with depression who go on to develop an alcohol drink problem are wrongly labelled as being an alcoholic. This is so wrong and I consider it to be very dangerous. Sadly our American cousins love to label things and here the AA institution is sadly partly to blame, as your expected to say and admit to being an alcoholic as soon as you walk through the door. "Hi my names Richard and I'm an alcoholic", if you don't admit to this, then in every ones eyes your in denial. But you've already been labelled. To have developed a drinking problem doesn't necessarily make you an alcoholic.
So, there you are, not only do your still have the depression to deal with, but you now have an issue with alcohol. Sadly the two aren't always dealt with together. To try and treat someone whose now developed a drink problem without getting to the root of the cause as to why they drink is a waste of time in my opinion, as there addressing the symptom and not the cause.
If anyone goes and reads My Story on the BLT website: britishlivertrust.org.uk/st... they will learn of my drinking past and my battle with depression. I have been one of those people who have been down that road of self medication just like so many others. The physical damage has now been repaired, but sadly I'm now suffering with a tremendous feeling of guilt and despair as I feel so unworthy of this liver I now have, this isn't helping with my depression either as I'm now carrying a heavy burden.
I started off by saying that the words, "Mental Health" covers such a wide spectrum and I'm not convinced that putting all these conditions under one umbrella really helps. As I said earlier, a lot more research is needed into the causes of depression. Some say it's caused my a chemical imbalance within the brain, while others disagree. So, if the exact cause of depression is still unknown, how can it be treated successfully?
I remember reading an article sometime back about Dr Joanna Moncrieff, senior lecturer in psychiatry at University College London and author of The Myth Of The Chemical Cure. Some may find this an interesting article: dailymail.co.uk/health/arti...
I'll climb down off my soap box now and hopefully I've started an interesting debate.
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This should be done in all schools in the world as part of their curriculum, at least in high schools. UK first, then maybe Australia will see the benefits.
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