Support and Wellbeing
Pastoral Support
Bringing up children is never easy and, here at St Edmund’s, we are privileged to have Mrs Geraldine Tod as our Home School Link Worker and ELSA. Her role includes supporting parents/carers and children where issues are impacting on family life e.g. illness, domestic abuse, disability or financial difficulties. She also offers support and encouragement to parents/carers who are finding managing their children’s behaviour difficult. Her work as an ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) includes working with children displaying signs of anxiety, low mood or low self-esteem.
In addition, she runs our Rainbows programme, where children receive excellent support if they have suffered loss in their life, be it death, divorce or separation. Many parents comment on how effective these sessions are in helping their children.
Mrs Tod works on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. If you would like to contact her please ring the office to make an appointment or email her at gtod@stedmunds.surrey.sch.uk
Wellbeing
Due to the current Coronavirus situation your child/ren may well be feeling anxious and scared.
Reassure them that this is perfectly normal and that grown-ups worry sometimes too, after all, this is new and strange for all of us. They will be watching to see how you react to the situation, so try to model calm responses to events. It can be a relief for children to know that adults can sometimes feel worried about things but they are still OK.
Your children may be asking you when the lockdown is going to finish and when they are going back to school (if they’re not already back) which are all questions none of us know the answer to. It is OK not to have answers all the time – not knowing all the answers is part of life. Listen to your child’s worries and do not dismiss them. Provide them with the level of information that you feel is appropriate, without overwhelming them.
For more information, helpful tips and advice please click on the links below:
Useful Links
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/improve-mental-wellbeing/
The following websites might be useful if you have experienced bereavement or want to support children who are dealing with pre bereavement issues.