Collaborative partnership agreement between Islington Schools and Islington Council

  1. What is the aim and purpose of the Mental Health and Resilience in Islington Schools (iMHARS) quality improvement project?

The purpose of the mental health and resilience framework project is to develop, test and share an evidence-based framework to; promote positive mental health; prevent the development of mental illness and; produce resilient pupils across Islington schools.

Schools will be supported to identify and audit their work to support pupils' mental health and resilience. The auditing process will enable schools to reflect on their practices and develop their understanding of resilience. Schools will be supported to improve an aspect of school life through quality improvement methodology and evidence based interventions, to bring about improvement in mental health and resilience.

The work with schools will inform the final whole-school framework for resilience, identifying an evidence-based best practice tool that enables all schools (primary and secondary, mainstream and special schools) to identify and develop areas of school practice that promote mental health and resilience. Guidance, resources, examples of good practice, and support for schools will be identified and developed to support all Islington schools to implement the framework.

  1. What does the project mean for your school?

All schools will work closely with the Improvement Advisor, who will support each school to audit their current provision. In order to identify and highlight good practice, the Improvement Advisor may attend lessonsand speak to staff, parents and pupils, to explore how they contribute to the mental health and resilience framework.

Information will be collected through a mixture of questionnaires, focus groups and/ or workshops, and will be shared with the school. All information will be anonymised.

  1. Who owns the information and how will you maintain confidentiality?

All information collected by the Improvement Advisor is owned by the headteacher of the participating school. The headteacher has access to all information, and s/he has the right to remove any information throughout the process.The school project lead and/ or headteacher can receive regular updates on the audit which can be arranged with the Improvement Advisor.

Interviews and focus groups will either be digitally recorded or written notes will be kept of the conversation. Information collected through focus groups, interviews and questionnaires will be anonymised and treated confidentially.

  1. Will permission need to be obtained by the project’s participants?

Staff

The Improvement Advisor will explain the project’s aims, objectives and potential benefits to all staffat staff briefings/ focus groups/ individually and/ or at any other meetings which the school deems appropriate.

The school should provide additional information sheets for staff on the project, if this is required.

The Improvement Advisor may attend lessons to share good practice. Prior permission from staff should be gathered by the senior leadership team at the school.

Parents

If parents need more information on the MHARS project, schools should provide parents with an information sheet/ letter and/ or details within the school newsletter.Staff should notify parents of the MHARS project if they are contributing to a focus group.

Pupils

School staff will be encouraged to speak to pupils about the project to create greater awareness of the project’s objectives.

  1. What happens if there is a disclosure or safeguarding concern at your school?

Part of the project will involve asking pupils, parents and school staff about their feelings and attitudes towards mental health and wellbeing, and the support that the school provides. None of the questions are designed to intentionally induce stress. However, some pupils, parents, and teachers, may find answering the questions difficult and/ or upsetting.

During the process, if a pupil or a member of staff makes a disclosure, the Improvement Advisor will notify the Headteacherimmediately (or if unavailable, the Deputy Headteacher), and the matter will become the school’s responsibility. Similarly, the Improvement Advisor will immediately notify the Headteacher if they have any safeguarding concerns about a child/ren, and the matterwill subsequently become the school’s responsibility.The Improvement Advisor will also record the safeguarding concerns in writing and send this to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.

Contact Details

If you have any questions regarding the above, or if you require further information, please contact:

Lil Fahy, Health Improvement Advisor- Mental Health and Resilience

Mobile: 077 1240 7918 Email:

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