Colman Noctor: Making the case for mental health programmes in schools 

However, schools are only one environment in a child’s life. If the skills learned there are not echoed and reinforced at home, they risk being diluted or forgotten

School-based social and emotional learning programmes not only improve wellbeing but also academic outcomes, with students showing better concentration, fewer behavioural problems, and even higher grades.

Childhood and adolescence today are far more complicated than they once were. Social media has transformed how children relate to each other, climate change is no longer a distant concern but a daily headline, and the post-pandemic world has left behind a residue of anxiety and disconnection.

Stepping into this change, schools have increasingly taken on the role of not just providing academic instruction but also offering emotional support. One of the most notable changes in the past decade has been the rise of school-based mental fitness programmes and the inclusion of ‘wellbeing’ hours in the curriculum.