Mental health has always been fundamental to well-being but, only recently, has it been given the attention it deserves.

The month of May shines a spotlight on mental health with Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK from 9 to 15 May. This year, the focus for the UK’s Mental Health Awareness Week is on loneliness which has become a more prevalent issue since the COVID pandemic began.

As an organisation whose mission is focused on child development, we are big advocates of promoting the excellent support and resources available on this important issue. These include tips on pre-empting mental health issues, activities to help adults and children understand mental health together and ways to aid open communication with young people.

Below are some resources we have found helpful or interesting in relation children's mental health. We’ll also be posting useful pages, articles and tips on our Facebook and Instagram pages through May, while encouraging our followers to share they experience and advice. Make sure you're following us to stay up to date! 

• Mental Health UK: Mental Health Awareness Week 2022
• Mental Health UK: Young People’s Resources. This is a series of animated videos based on the mental health resilience workshops from Mental Health UK’s young people’s programme.
• NHS: Every Mind Matters – Children’s Mental Health section. This is a general advice area which includes tips to support young people and signs to identify if something is wrong.
• Young Minds – when to check in with a young person. Focuses on useful tips around how to subtly check on your children’s mental health.

At Perform, our classes focus on activities which build confidence and promote  teamwork and communication skills which should naturally contribute to avoiding issues such as loneliness developing. However, they don’t directly address these areas.

If you have any suggestions for resources or tips which you think could help other parents, please do comment on our posts and start a discussion with other parents. As a Perform community of parents, we can all look out for each other!