Identifying need and monitoring impact
Identifying need
Spotting problems early and responding promptly often results in a reduced risk of mental health problems. Staff need to be clear about what might be a cause for concern and recognise the early signs of mental health problems.
Form tutors and class teachers may spot changes in behaviour, attainment or attendance. This could suggest a problem and it is helpful to keep and track reliable data on this.
When school/colleges suspect that a child or young person is having mental health difficulties, they should not delay putting support in place, using the graduated response process (assess, plan, do, review):
• an assessment to establish a clear analysis of the child or young person's needs;
• a plan to set out how the child or young person will be supported;
• action to provide that support; and
• regular reviews to assess the effectiveness of the provision and lead to changes where necessary
Assessment
To decide the adjustments and support a pupil needs, the MHEW team need a shared understanding of child or young person's needs.
- Observe child/young person’s behaviour: is it internalising (such as low mood), or externalising (such as aggression)? Behaviour is communication so it's important to explore the feelings and motivations behind it.
- Use a collaborative approach: base your approach a broad and holistic range of information. Include the pupil voice, parent or carer views, observations and information gathered through assessment tools.
- Decide on an assessment tool: There are a variety of tools that education settings can use as the basis for understanding and planning a response to child and young person’s mental health and wellbeing needs. The tools range from simple feedback forms to validated measures which can focus on both wellbeing and mental health. For examples of validated tools to assess children and young people's wellbeing, see Public Health England's guidance on measuring mental wellbeing in children and young people)
Clear referral pathways
It’s essential for all staff to know and understand the following:
- The MHEW support that is available within and outside your setting. (a graduated response)
- How a child or young person accesses this support.
- The process for agreeing support in your school or college.
- How you evaluate interventions.
- What path to take if the child or young person does not improve with initial support.
- How to signpost the pupil and their family to the right staff member(s) for more information or support.
In larger schools or colleges, it can be helpful to set up a MHEW panel. The panel can discuss children and young peoples’ needs and make group decisions about suitable support that is available.
Referral flow template
To see an example of a successful referral model you can view the St Richard’s document (add attachment as website is being changed)
Within the referral flow model, you can include the following:
- The aims, purpose and membership of the panel and experts you may invite.
- Referral form, guidance and process.
- How and where to save referrals on the school system.
- Responsibility of referrer.
- Contact with parents and carers.
- Intervention and support guidance with thresholds.
- Interventions for the year, such as type, criteria, intended outcomes, details, key staff and their role.
- Signposting information.
Resources:
MindEd – provides free online teaching to help adults to identify and understand children and young people with mental health problems. It provides simple, clear guidance on mental health to adults who work with children and young people, to help them support the development of young healthy minds.
Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) – the SDQ can assist schools in taking an overview and making a judgement about whether a pupil is likely to be suffering from a mental health problem.
Boxall Profile – an online assessment tool for social emotional and behavioural difficulties for children and young people.
Template Referral Process [152.6 KB] [docx]