Children’s Mental Health Week
From 5th to 11th of February, we are raising awareness for the mental health challenges children and young people face while acknowledging the importance of their voices.
The theme of the 2024 Children’s Mental Health Week is ‘My Voice Matters’. This year’s theme underscores the importance of letting children and young people be key contributors in the discussions surrounding their mental health, giving them a platform to express themselves and be heard.
This year, to highlight the significance of mental health among children and young people, we are introducing a new name for Children’s Mental Health Week – Children’s and Young People Mental Health Week.
The mental wellbeing of young people has become increasingly crucial as societal pressures, academic expectations and the digital age continue to evolve. During this week, we encourage communities to come together to address, support, and advocate for the mental health of the younger generation.
75% of mental illnesses begin before a person’s 18th birthday. At Change Mental Health we understand the importance of caring for mental health even at an early age.
“We were given toolkits that included lots of solutions that gave me the options to decide which one fits best. I also appreciated the templates made that allowed us to create our own step by step walkthroughs on how we would solve our own problems.”
This young person (15) attended the Bloom workshop at Thurso High School. You can read more about Bloom impact on rural communities from the teachers and other students here.
Change Mental Health‘s commitment to young people’s mental health is embodied by our Young People’s Programmes. Our approach to mental health education for young people is centred around listening to their opinions and involving them in the course development process. Young People’s Programmes include:
Bloom is a mental health awareness program aimed at 14-18 year olds. With ‘My Voice Matters’ as our guiding theme, Bloom equips young minds with resilience tools to address social pressures, exam stress, and life transitions. Collaborating with teachers, the programme ensures a sustainable impact, leaving a legacy of mental health awareness in schools.
Your Resilience delivers support outside the classroom, offering flexible one-off workshops or a 7-week program. From anxiety to work-life balance, this initiative empowers both facilitators and young participants, fostering a community where mental health conversations thrive.
Me & Money is addressing rising money anxiety in young people amid the cost of living crisis. This program explores the interconnection between money and mental health. Co-produced with young people, the one-hour workshop aims to empower, equip, and provide resilience-building skills.
If you know of a school or youth organisation you would like us to engage with, copy us (ciara.mallon@changemh.org) into an email with the relevant teachers, coaches or leaders. From there, we will explain how we can work together to support young people’s mental health.
Your donation enables us to make sure that more young people’s voices are heard, understood and respected. We work hard to ensure that young people are surrounded by a supportive network of people who understand mental illness and the pressures that young people face in day-to-day life.
Do you have an upcoming “dress down day” in your workplace? Or maybe you’re raffling off a hamper of tasty goodies? If you would like the money you raise to contribute towards building a future where people of all ages can speak openly about their mental health and receive the support that they need, then we would thrilled to hear from you!
Contact us today at fundraising@changemh.org.
Head to the official website of the Children’s Mental Health Week to access their social media resources to help you take part in this year’s celebration and spread the word about the importance of young people’s voices.
support
If you are an educator or work in student support, Bloom and Your Resilience provides school staff with the opportunity to develop their skills and confidence in having open conversations about mental health and support young people in transitioning to higher education. Learn more about the different Young People’s Programmes and contact us for more details.
Our Advice and Support Service is open Monday to Friday, 10 am to 4 pm, where advisers can signpost you to local support that most fits your needs, including our own Change Mental Health services. We offer initial advice on money worries and help to deal with emergencies.
Contact 0808 8010 515, email us at advice@changemh.org or fill out the enquiry form on the Advice and Support Service page.
