Our staff take great pride in the fact that wellbeing is at the core of everything that St. Michael’s does. Mental well-being is at the heart of all we do. Happy, confident children are motivated, resilient learners.

 We have developed excellent mechanisms for supporting children with emotional and well-being difficulties. For those children struggling with anxiety, emotional regulation and low self-esteem, we provide extensive support through nurture groups such as Lego Therapy, Relax Kids and Zones of Regulation and 1:1 support bespoke to the child. We have engaged with the ‘Anxious about School’ training delivered by the Local Authority and follow their recommendations when supporting children presenting with school-based anxiety.

Support staff in classes nurture vulnerable pupils and address their anxieties from inside and outside the school environment. We are able to provide 1:1 and group support over lunchtimes and work closely with parents to ensure a consistent approach at both home and school.

A member of SLT is the well-being lead and has engaged in extensive training (Senior Mental Health Lead training and Mental Health First Aid).

We have Year 6 buddies who support our Reception class children throughout their first year of school. The children form strong relationships with each other and instantly feel part of the whole school community.

We celebrate the uniqueness and achievements of our children at every opportunity with all our children looking forward the weekly Celebration Assemblies.

Alongside the academic curriculum, we have a carefully mapped-out approach to fostering the spiritual, emotional, moral and social development of the children recognising that the ability to keep themselves mentally and physically healthy is vital to their future if they are to be resilient, adaptive and kind individuals.

Our children are taught the importance of looking after their bodies and mind through PSHE, P.E. and science lessons and assemblies that are led by the various pupil groups. The children love completing the daily mile each afternoon. During breaktimes we have a reading shed, play equipment and a variety of games on offer. Ensuring that the children have fun and purposeful activities to engage in eliminates any unnecessary behaviour issues.

Throughout their time at St. Michael’s, the children receive a rich and varied mixture of experiences through trips, residentials, visitors and workshops designed to give the children a wealth of encounters and opportunities to develop personal qualities and new skills. Our children love activities such as wheelchair basketball, den-building, meeting animals and hoopstarz. We have wonderful visitors to the school such as authors, historians and scientists. The children go on at least two trips a year- we try to make these trips as varied as possible. In addition, all the children take part in various external sports festivals over the year through the School Sports Partnership.

We encourage the children to engage with current affairs and be active citizens who feel connected to the local and world-wide community. We want them to have a sense of occasion and of course, enjoy their time at school. Therefore we celebrate national and international events such as royal occasions (e.g. the Coronation) and sporting occasions (e.g. the Olympics and the World Cup). We annually hold whole school events for World Book Day and Number Day. We enjoy Autumn discos, Easter raffles, World Wide Day and holding events to raise money for charity. Life at St. Michael’s is certainly never boring!