Guardian Angels' RCPS is committed to ensuring that our school has a Trauma and Mental Health Informed Approach to ensure all our children have positive mental health and resilience, enabling them to fully engage in life and learning.

There is a growing body of research and understanding of the impact of Childhood Adversity on long term mental and physical health and the protective factors that lessen the potential  impact.

It is our aim to maximise the protective factors at our school by creating an environment of safety that has strong, positive and supportive relationships at its heart, All staff will provide an environment of both physical and psychological safety and have the skills to respond to those who have been impacted by trauma.

We fully understand and support the impact that connection with a trusted, emotionally available adult has on a child and seek to maximise this for those in our care who are identified as requiring additional support.

We use the PACE approach which focuses on building trusting relationships, emotional connections, containment and a sense of security.

The principals of P and the 3Rs will underpin all relational work completed to support our children:

Protect

Relate

Regulate

Reflect

Mrs Leigh is a qualified Trauma Informed Practitioner. All of our staff have undertaken Trauma Informed training so that they have the skills, knowledge and understanding to respond to our children's needs.

Our Well-being and Readiness to learn and our Relationships policies reflect a trauma informed approach.

At Guardian Angels' RCPS, we aim to support children with social, emotional and mental health problems at the earliest opportunity. Our Trauma Informed approaches include:

Sand Play

Lego Therapy

Big Empathy Drawings

Art Therapy

Emotion Cards