Wellbeing
Wellbeing Leaders
All pupils are invited to apply for the position of Wellbeing Leader. Successful pupils are then appointed and given training by the Anti-Bullying Coordinator, this training covers aspects such as who to report concerns to, how to help people, possible scenarios they may face, listening skills etc. Both school yards have a ‘Wellbeing Bench’ where the Wellbeing Leaders are on hand during breaks and lunchtimes on a rota system to ensure a Wellbeing Leader is always available for support. Wellbeing Leaders photographs are also displayed in school and they wear Wellbeing Leader badges to make them easily identifiable by other pupils.
Giving - Do things for others
Helping others is not only good for them and a good thing to do, it also makes us happier and healthier too. Giving also connects us to others, creating stronger communities and helping to build a happier society for everyone. And it's not all about money - we can also give our time, ideas and energy.
Exercising - Take care of your body
Our body and our mind are connected. Being active makes us happier as well as being good for our physical health. It instantly improves our mood. We can also boost our well-being by unplugging from technology, getting outside and - importantly - making sure we get enough sleep.
Awareness - Life live mindfully
Learning to be more mindful and aware can improve our well-being in all areas of life - like our walk to work, the way we eat or our relationships. It helps us get in tune with our feelings and stops us dwelling on the past or worrying about the future - so we get more out of the day-to-day.
Trying out - Keep learning new things
Learning affects our well-being in lots of positive ways. It exposes us to new ideas and helps us stay curious and engaged. It also gives us a sense of accomplishment and helps boost our self-confidence and resilience.
Direction - Have goals to look forward to
Feeling good about the future is important for our happiness. We all need goals to motivate us and these need to be challenging enough to excite us, but also achievable. Choosing ambitious but realistic goals gives our lives direction and brings a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when we achieve them.
Resilience - Find ways to bounce back
All of us have times of stress, loss, failure or upset in our lives. But how we respond to these has a big impact on our wellbeing. We often cannot choose what happens to us, but in principle we can choose our own attitude to what happens. It's not always easy, but findings from recent research show that resilience, like many other life skills, can be learned.
Acceptance – Be comfortable with who are you
No-one’s perfect. Learning to accept ourselves, warts and all, and being kinder to ourselves when things go wrong, increases our enjoyment of life, our resilience and our well-being. It also helps us accept others as they are.
Emotions - Look for what’s good
Positive emotions - like joy, gratitude, contentment, inspiration, and pride - are not just great at the time. Recent research shows that regularly experiencing them creates an 'upward spiral', helping to build our resources.
Meaning – Be part of something bigger
People who have meaning and purpose in their lives are happier, feel more in control and get more out of what they do. They also experience less stress, anxiety and depression.
BMS wellbeing sessions will rotate through the above these themes. The aim of these weekly sessions is to support pupils and staff to make positive decisions in their lives, and also to create more happiness around them because we realise that doing things to increase other people’s happiness also makes us as individuals happier too. We also aim to communicate that happiness is not about denying negative feelings, but sometimes about making the most of good times and learning to cope effectively with bad times too. These weekly sessions may take the various forms (e.g. reading prompts, activities, quotes or scenarios to discuss etc.) so that they can be tailored to the needs of each individual form class.
Monthly calendars (https://www.