YP Letters: Teachers must be equipped to be resilient for pupils' sake

There's much greater awareness of mental health issues now.

From: Julian Stanley, CEO, Education Support Partnership, Drayton Park, London.

WE applaud the action some Yorkshire schools and organisations are taking to make children’s mental health a priority as part of the curriculum (‘Vital lesson in happiness – improving children’s mental health’, The Yorkshire Post, January 18).

Beverley Wright, deputy headteacher at Clifton with Rawcliffe Primary School, is right to point out that children are less likely to thrive and become successful if they are struggling emotionally.

The fantastic range of  activity her school and others  are delivering is an example to all.

Following the Prime Minister’s commitment earlier this month, we believe that for teachers in every school in the UK to feel they can adequately support pupils, an ‘oxygen mask’ approach is essential.

To ‘lead by example,’ teachers must also be equipped to protect themselves.

Leeds City Council has recognised this and we are working together to help head teachers support each other in the city through our ‘Headspace’ programme.

We are currently working with over half the schools in Leeds to improve staff wellbeing and in April the Pathfinder Trust in York will be holding a free mental health conference for schools in the city at Archbishop Holgate’s School.

Here at the charity  Education Support Partnership we help thousands of  struggling teachers across the  UK every year as the pressures they face in the workplace  grow.

In our last annual health survey of more than 2,000 education professionals, 84  per cent told us they had  suffered from some form of mental health problem in the last two years and over half (53 per cent) felt their ill health  had impacted on their pupil’s studies.

Spiralling workloads, budgetary pressures, unrealistic demands and expectations are increasingly taking their toll on many.

While Yorkshire schools are clearly leading the way with some fantastic work, there is much more to do.

When the Government publishes its Green Paper for consultation later this year, we want it to look frankly at the sources of distress and the impact on the profession to keep teachers resilient and at their best for their pupils.

We must pool expertise and invest for long-term health and wellbeing for all.