Good mental health gives children a sense of security and enables the development of essential life skills, such as trust, independence, and resilience. But young people also rely on the adults around them to support and safeguard their social and emotional wellbeing.  A child’s wellbeing can change at any time and is influenced by what’s happening in their lives and the actions that people around them take. By engaging in regular quality conversations about all aspects of a child’s life we are better placed to notice and support children who might be at risk of a decline in their mental health.

Preventative action through The Common Approach

The Common Approach was first developed by ARACY in 2010. There are six wellbeing areas that align with The Nest, Australia’s first evidence based framework for national child and youth wellbeing: Loved and Safe, Healthy, Participating, Positive Sense of Culture and Identity, Material Basics, and Learning. The approach aims to increase awareness of the role all adults play in keeping children safe and well, and provide resources that enable child-centred discussion.

Early intervention through schools

Evidence demonstrates that schools are ideal settings for early engagement with children to address mental health and wellbeing. Due to this unique positioning, we have developed Kinnections® for schools. Kinnections is an innovative tool that enables a whole-school approach to student mental health and wellbeing. The platform provides educators with a simple system for identifying and responding to students’ mental health needs through quality, child-focused conversations. In just a few minutes a week, teachers can track four key elements which impact on student’s wellbeing: social connectedness (loneliness), positive future focus (hope), sense of safety and general wellbeing. Over time children’s responses form a holistic view of their social and emotional wellbeing and can help schools identify early warning signs.

The school community plays a crucial role in positively influencing the mental health outcomes of its students. Implementing a proactive, preventative approach to wellbeing can reduce long term impacts associated with poor mental health. By raising awareness around the importance of student wellbeing and encouraging child centred conversations in the classroom and school community we can help ensure positive outcomes for our children.

Our aim is to empower teaching staff with the tools they need to positively support student mental health. Book a 30-minute meeting with us to find out more about using Kinnections in your school.