The MAT has commissioned the YMCA Trinity Group for the last two years to support pupils with their mental health and is delighted to announce it has received additional funding from the Eastern Counties Educational Trust (ECET) to secure its services for a third year.
Alistair Young, YMCA Trinity Group’s Clinical Operations Manager, said: “The support we provide is predominantly one-to-one therapy for individuals with some additional group work. We work on issues such as self-esteem, anxiety, behavioural and family issues. Our mental health provision is done on site at each one of the schools by a fully qualified mental health therapist. We have seen a rise in mental health issues among young people post-pandemic. However, I think the pandemic has most likely revealed the extent of mental health issues that were there before.”
A recent NHS report revealed one in six young people now have a mental health issue, the equivalent of five pupils in a class of 30.
Jane Sheat, CEO of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocesan Multi-Academy Trust, said: “We are delighted to be working for a third year with YMCA Trinity Group to support our pupils’ mental health. As a Trust, we are very aware of the social and emotional issues affecting some pupils and are confident that trained YMCA therapists have really helped over the last two years. We are keen to help pupils to address some of the mental health issues which have worsened since Covid. This will enable pupils to do well at school and to develop skills for life. We are grateful to the ECET trust for a generous grant which has funded this work for the last two years and now into a third year. Therapists will continue to work in hubs across Suffolk, supporting our 21 MAT schools and the work they do to promote children’s wellbeing.”
For more on the YMCA Trinity Group’s work with mental health, see here.