Teachers have no time for mental health, says Duchess
TEACHERS who want to help children through mental health issues are struggling to find time to research them, the Duchess of Cambridge has suggested, as she launched an initiative to help the “most vulnerable” children.
The Duchess, who has two young children and is expecting her third in April, said teachers were best placed to help pupils through mental health and emotional issues, but do not have time to “hunt the best information”.
At a London school to announce a website aimed at curating tried-and-tested mental health resources for school, she added she hoped to give teachers “easy access” to information.
The pilot project, from the Royal Foundation, is called Mentally Healthy Schools and is expected to be rolled out nationwide in the spring after being monitored and reviewed.
In a speech to launch the portal, the Duchess told education professionals and guests from the mental health sector: “I see time and time again that there is so much to be gained from talking of mental health and taking the mental health of our children as seriously as we do their physical health.
“When we intervene early, we help avoid problems that are much more challenging to address in adulthood.”
The Mentally Healthy Schools site is intended to provide a resource to help teachers talk to children about issues.
The Duchess, who was speaking at Roe Green Junior School in Kingsbury, north-west London, added: “Teachers want to help, but don’t have the time to go hunting for the best information and advice out there. You need resources you can trust. And you need to have easy access to them at all times. That is what this pilot is all about.”