Transforming young people’s emotional wellbeing across Hertfordshire through
The Power of Small Changes
was held 26th February - 18th March!
Sporting Inspirations CIC is a proud Just Talk Partner and we are excited to announce
The Power of Small
Changes,
Just Talk’s upcoming campaign.
The campaign is challenging young people, families and schools across Hertfordshire to make easy
everyday changes such as taking a short walk or giving someone a compliment, to see how easy it
can be to improve wellbeing.
The challenge kicks off on 26 February and offers the chance to win a £50 Amazon voucher!
We’re encouraging young people and families to take part in the challenge to experience “The
Power of Small Changes“ and to enter into the prize draw. To find out how to get involved visit
https://www.justtalkherts.org/powerofsmallchanges
Just Talk is a partnership of 50+ organisations in health, social care, education and voluntary
organisations across Hertfordshire. Co-ordinated by Hertfordshire County Council’s Public Health
team, the programme is steered by young people and on a mission to strengthen understanding of
wellbeing and empower everyone on their journeys towards better mental health.
The Children’s Services Awards 2023
The Children’s Services Awards 2023 took place on 7 December 2023. This is an inspiring annual event to celebrate the work and achievements in Children’s Services over the past year. It provides the perfect opportunity to recognise some of the individuals who have gone above and beyond to make a difference to children, young people and families in Hertfordshire, as well as teams that have excelled and shown a passion for outcome focussed solutions for children, young people and families.
Commissioned by Hertfordshire's Children and Young People’s Mental Health Services (CYPMHS), Hertfordshire Mind Network’s Herts Haven Café in Stevenage were delighted to be finalists in the Partner of the Year category. The team was nominated by Lucy Davis, Services for Young People (SfYP) Area Service Manager who said:
“We are really proud to have Hertfordshire Mind Network utilising our HCC Services for Young People Centre in Stevenage for the delivery of the new Herts Haven Café."
“These free, welcoming drop-in opportunities are for 10-18 year olds across Hertfordshire, to access support for their emotional wellbeing. The main goal of the cafés is to create a non-judgmental environment where young people feel comfortable sharing their concerns."
“The team has made an amazing effort to integrate the invaluable emotional wellbeing support they offer into the wider offer within the Centre. They have made great links with our staff team to support us to signpost and even broker young people into this offer, complementing the support they are receiving from our service. Ceri and the team have attended our practice meetings to provide staff updates and are always open to questions if we have any! We are really proud to work with the Herts Haven Cafe Team!"
Ceri Roderick-Roast, Senior Lead CYP who attended the “Narnia themed” awards ceremony with café colleague Rosie said: “The café team and everyone at Hertfordshire Mind Network are thrilled to have been nominated for this award.
“We’re very grateful to be working in partnership with the SfYP team, helping as many young people as possible to get the help they need, by talking about their worries and learning new skills to help improve their emotional wellbeing.”
The Herts Haven cafés in Stevenage and Watford opened in summer 2023 and the new Hemel Hempstead café (which replaced the café in South Oxhey) opened in November 2023. Since opening they have received more than 145 visits. Here are just a few of the comments received from those who have benefited so far:
“It was very welcoming and comfy… and it was peaceful”.
“The activities helped me be calm and relaxed”.
Find out more about Herts Haven Cafes in Stevenage, Watford and Hemel Hempstead here
Introduction to Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing professionals e-learning available now
Professionals from across Hertfordshire’s children and young people’s mental health services (CYPMHS) system have created an hour long e-learning module, suitable for all professionals working with Hertfordshire’s children and young people.
This introductory module takes about an hour to complete and has been developed, as it is vital that all professionals working with children and young people in health, social care, education and voluntary sectors know about:
· how to identify mental/emotional health problems in children and young people as soon as they emerge
· where to find the appropriate help for the young person and their parents/carers
· what professionals can do themselves to help improve the emotional wellbeing and mental health of the children and young people they are working with.
The module is free and available for Hertfordshire County Council staff to complete on i-Learn. It is also recommended that professionals visit the Trauma Information Hub where you can also access a brand-new Trauma Awareness e-learning module (see below for more information about this*). Links to both the Children and Young People's Mental Health module and the Trauma Information Hub are below:
Links for:
Hertfordshire County Council Staff:
· Course: Trauma Information Hub (learningpool.com)
Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust:
· Course: Trauma Informed Awareness for External Partners (e-learning) (mylearningzonehct.com)
Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust:
· (links to be added shortly)
NHS Primary Care staff and staff working at Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations:
· eLearning : Trauma-Awareness (event-booking.org.uk)
Education staff:
We are in the process of finding a suitable platform for education staff to access these modules and will publicise details in future editions. Please e: lisa.gazeley@hertfordshire.gov.uk now so that you can receive a link to the training as soon as it is available.
Once completed, we'd be grateful to receive your feedback on the modules, so we can continually improve them.
*Trauma results from an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as harmful or life threatening. While unique to the individual, generally the experience of trauma can cause lasting adverse effects, limiting the ability to function and achieve mental, physical, social, emotional or spiritual well-being.
In Hertfordshire we have an important part to play in understanding that anyone can struggle due to experiences of trauma at any point in their lives. In March 2023 we launched an all-age, all-partner trauma strategy, seeking to recognise trauma histories are a possibility for everyone. Therefore, we must assume that people have had traumatic experiences and adjust our service delivery to prioritise supporting our workers and those accessing our services to feel safe and supported, with emphasis on promoting safety, trust and building relationships and agency.
People can heal from trauma, and some thrive in spite of it. Trauma adapted people often have unique strengths and abilities that develop in response to high-stress environments which can make them more effective at certain tasks. When we ask ourselves ‘What happened to this person?’ we can also ask ‘What are their strengths?’
The Introduction to Trauma e-learning module has been developed by a multi-agency panel and is essential for ALL those that work with children and/or adults.
We celebrated JustTalk Week 2023!
Just Talk is an initiative that encourages open conversations about mental health among children and young people, collaborating with over 40 health, social care, education, and voluntary organisations across Hertfordshire.
The programme is steered by young people themselves, creating resources, guidance and support to help navigate the ups and downs of life.
Sporting Inspirations CIC is dedicated to the emotional wellbeing of Hertfordshire’s youth and is actively involved in the Just Talk programme, championing positive mental health messages and support for young people.
This year, Just Talk had its seventh annual
Just Talk Week 20th-27th November and it was all about going ‘Back to Basics’, with a focus on ensuring that children and young people, parents, carers, schools and professionals across Hertfordshire have awareness of campaign as well as the resources available. This campain was a week full of valuable insights and activities, all aimed at strengthening emotional wellbeing. We encouraged young people, parents, carers, and professionals working with young people to get involved.
How to get support?
We encourage young people, parents, carers, and professionals working with young people to get involved.
For more information, please visit and follow @JustTalkHerts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
ANTI-BULLYING WEEK
13th - 19th November 2023!
During the #AntiBullyingWeek, we stood against bullying.
The number of young people reportedly experiencing bullying has been increasing over the last few years, the Just Talk network is working together to tackle this. Just Talk co-produced resources for education settings and has worked with our local partners to provide support for young people’s wellbeing around this topic.
Find out more at https://buff.ly/40u54jW #ThinkTwiceBeNice
Sporting Inspirations CIC Support JUST TALK HERTS & Young People
