Speaking to a school counsellor can be a transformative experience for
children and young people. It can help them cope with the difficult
circumstances they face in their lives - and to go on and flourish in
the future.
Having
spent the last six years providing counselling to various schools across
Lincolnshire, I understand the need to create a
bespoke counselling service to meet the needs of your school and provide your students with an easily accessible, non-stigmatising and
effective form of early intervention for reducing psychological distress
in children and young people.
As a trained school counsellor with an enhanced DBS I can provide a young person a place that is
focused 100% on their needs – a safe space to help them to understand
and cope with what they’re going through.
Counselling has been shown to have a positive effect on young people’s confidence,
resilience, sense of self-worth, family relationships, friendships,
school attendance and academic achievement.
I have worked with Jamie
in a professional capacity for many years now.
Jamie is an enthuasitic, dynamic and professional counsellor. He offers great support to our students and meets their individual needs and always puts the welfare of our students
first. Jamie is an asset to Lincoln Christ's Hospital School. Thank
you, Jamie, for your continuous support.
-
Linda Southworth
Deputy Safeguarding Lead
Lincoln Christ's Hospital School
According to NHS data, the mental health of children and young people in England has worsened since 2017. Even before the pandemic, children and young people were facing a
mental health crisis. Although children and young people under 25 have
always had to deal with personal identity issues in formative years,
risks to mental health have been greatly exacerbated by heightened
academic expectations and the ubiquity of social media.
- House of Commons Committee Report on Children and Young People’s Mental Health 2021
A bespoke service allows me to work as a counsellor in a school for an established period of time each week, determined by the school’s requirements. This integration allows the school to use the service flexibly, according to changing needs and priorities. Part of my role is to establish strong relationships that enable good communication and effective collaboration with all parties: counsellor, pupils, parents, and school staff, as appropriate.
There are many benefits to a school based counselling service. As well
as primarily supporting children with their emotional well-being,
integrating the expertise of a trained counsellor into your school’s
support network extends the provision you can offer to your school's
community.
There is growing recognition within the education community that schools
need to address and support the emotional wellbeing of children and
young people in their care more effectively. Failure to tackle issues
early too often leads to children not reaching their potential,
distracted by difficulties that become barriers to learning that could
negatively impact their lives in profound and enduring ways. In
contrast, providing targeted and developmentally appropriate support at
the right time is likely to enhance a child’s resilience and build
greater self-esteem and confidence.
As a school counsellor working onsite, I can help to build those relationships
with young people who need to talk to someone, offering a confidential
safe space so they can explore the many complex issues that a young
person may be struggling with.
*1 - Good Childhood Report 2022 https://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/good-childhood
*2 - The Office of the Children’s Commissioner. The state of children’s mental health services. January 2020.
https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/cco-the-state-of-childrens-mental-health-services.pdf
*3 - Health and Social Care Committee - https://committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence/2405/pdf/
*4 - The British Association of Counselling Practitioners - https://www.bacp.co.uk/news/news-from-bacp/2019/13-june-three-quarters-of-people-believe-schools-should-offer-counselling/
All Accessed 12th September 2023.