Since 2001, the Mental Health Foundation has been leading Mental Health Awareness Week – bringing the UK together to focus on good mental health. This year, the week took place from 12th to 18th May 2025 and the theme was ‘community’.
Our schools have been celebrating the power and importance of community as being part of a safe, positive community is vital for our mental health and wellbeing. We thrive when we have strong connections with other people and supportive communities remind us – we are not alone. Communities can provide a sense of belonging, safety, support in hard times, and give us a sense purpose. The CET community is strong. We champion positive communities whilst raising awareness of the risks of harmful spaces – particularly online.
Our primary schools have relished physical activities, enjoyed press pause days and have got creative with art and craft work. Children have engaged in ‘Celebrating Me!’ and been thinking from a therapeutic perspective.
Our secondary schools have embraced the theme ‘Know Yourself, Grow Yourself!’ and have worked hard to understand why some people suffer from anxiety and how we can combat our worries and unease.
Poor mental health can be highly impactful for children, families, communities and of course staff. The figures are horrific and despite so much effort by so many, there are no signs of a downward trend in mental health concerns for children. On the contrary, numbers are going up – the only piece of data that is going down is the age of children with mental health issues. Sadly, this is a national trend. Social data, indices of deprivation and health statistics for Cumbria are worrying and our local services stretched.
Some of our staff from the western hub met with Josh McAlister MP to highlight our concerns, discuss what we can do to tackle the mental health crisis facing children and young people and lobby for resourcing and action. It was a positive meeting with a follow up meeting involving West Cumbrian Headteachers and school leaders planned for July.
From L to R:
Des Bird, Director of Secondary Improvement
Sarah Dowell, Assistant SENCO, Hensingham Primary School
Gill Creighton, Head of Safeguarding
Gemma Brierley, Headteacher, Northside Primary School
Josh MacAlister, Labour MP for Whitehaven and Workington
Danielle Mitchell, Advanced Practitioner, Cumberland Virtual School Team
Laurie Black, Mental Health Lead, The Whitehaven Academy
Blake Hendren, Deputy Headteacher, Workington Academy
