THE DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE TO VISIT SCHOOLS IN SUPPORT OF CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH
London
Tuesday 5th February, 2019
The Duchess of Cambridge will undertake two school visits on 5th February to find out more about the support offered to students, teachers and parents to help with mental wellbeing.
Her Royal Highness will first visit Lavender Primary School in support of Place2Be’s Children’s Mental Health Week 2019. Place2Be, of which Her Royal Highness is Patron, is a leading UK children’s mental health charity providing in-school support and expert training to improve the emotional wellbeing of pupils, families, teachers and school staff. The charity works directly with more than 282 primary and secondary schools across England, Scotland and Wales.
One of The Duchess’s key areas of work is child mental health and the importance of support to provide young people with in-school mental health services at the earliest stage possible, to tackle problems before they can escalate.
Place2Be launched the first ever Children’s Mental Health Week in 2015 to shine a spotlight on the importance of children and young people’s mental health. The theme of this year’s Children’s Mental Health Week is ‘Healthy: Inside and Out’, focusing on the connection between physical and mental health.
During her visit The Duchess will meet teachers and students taking part in Children’s Mental Health Week activities and sit in on two different lessons focusing on the importance of physical and mental health. Her Royal Highness will also watch pupils taking part in the school’s Daily Mile challenge which teaches children about the importance of being active. Before departing The Duchess will join a group of parents talking about the challenges of putting in place good routines and habits around sleep, screen-time, healthy eating and exercise.
The Duchess will then visit Alperton Community School to meet the UK’s first winner of the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize, Andria Zafirakou, and find out more about the programmes the school runs to support both students and teachers with their mental wellbeing. Ms Zafirakou won the global prize in 2018 in recognition of her contribution to the school community.
On arrival The Duchess will join a roundtable discussion with teachers about students’ school readiness and teacher welfare. Her Royal Highness will then join students taking part in the Random Acts of Kindness Club, which is an extra-curricular club focussing on the wellbeing of the school community. Before departing The Duchess will drop in on an art class where she will hear how the school uses art to enhance children’s confidence and creativity.
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