A NEW wellbeing initiative being introduced into schools across Halton is set to ‘transform’ the way primary and secondary educators support children’s mental health.

The wellbeing support training delivered by Thrive has been rolled out at 70 per cent of the borough’s schools currently – with more than 470 staff members currently in training.

All of Halton’s schools are expected to complete the training by summer 2025.

The £300,000 contract is funded through the Department for Education’s Delivering Better Value fund, which supports local authorities and their partners to improve the delivery of SEND services for children and young people whilst working towards financial stability.

It consists of a three-month training programme, designed to equip educators with practical strategies they can use to support and develop the emotional wellbeing and resilience of children and young people.

As well as training and support for all staff, the programme also includes training with Thrive licenced practitioners within all settings giving key staff an in-depth understanding of the science behind social and emotional development.

Educators will also learn how this influences attendance, behaviour and learning outcomes.

There are currently 82 licensed practitioners training across Halton.

Mike Stapleton-Chambers, senior school quality assurance officer at Halton Borough Council, said: "At Halton we believe the Thrive Approach is going to be transformational.

“With the majority of our schools already signed up to take part this partnership with Thrive underlines the local authority’s commitment to improving mental health and wellbeing.

“We are ambitious for our children and young people. We want to do everything we can to support our schools to create the best possible environment for them to succeed. This partnership is going to make a significant, positive difference."

This month also sees the start of specific training for senior leaders to ensure they have the information needed to work closely with their trained practitioners to strategically implement and embed the approach.

As part of the programme all Halton staff will get access to the Thrive-Online platform to help them assess pupils’ social and emotional needs, create targeted action plans, and track their progress over time. 

Staff at The Brow Community Primary School in Runcorn are now completing their training.

Head teacher Lindey Webb said: “As a school we are really excited to be part of Halton's Thrive project to further develop our skills and strategies to assess and support the needs of our most vulnerable children in a robust, evidence-based way, while measuring the impact.

“Our ultimate aim is to improve the quality of life of children and their families, and we feel that, along with our inclusive, nurturing ethos, Thrive will help us to achieve this.”

Anna Smee, managing director of Thrive, added: "Halton is prioritising the mental wellbeing of the children and young people in their education settings and we at Thrive are excited to be part of this work.

“We know from our experience of working with education system leaders and individual schools for more than 25 years, that when the right support is in place, children's behaviour changes and they become much calmer and happier within themselves. This is the key to successful learning and to lifelong wellbeing.”