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Jigsaw’s schools initiative aimed at supporting �the mental health and wellbeing of young people by �developing a shared responsibility for mental health �across the whole school community.��

This slide is an opportunity to introduce the One Good School initiative to parents.

What is One Good School?

Jigsaw’s OGS initiative is aimed at supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young people by developing a shared responsibility for mental health across the whole school community.

This means that we all have a role to play in promoting and supporting youth mental health, whether that's by minding our own self-care, building on our understanding of mental health and developing the skills that will enable us to be that One Good Adult in the lives of young people. As parents and teachers we are probably the first to notice when a young person might be experiencing difficulty and by building our knowledge and skills, we may be in a position to support that young person before problems become overwhelming. �

So now we will look at what this looks like for parents (Click to next slide)

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This slide is an opportunity to tell parents a little about Jigsaw.

What is Jigsaw?

Jigsaw is the National Centre for Youth Mental Health in Ireland.

Our local hub offers one-one support to young people aged 12-25 years. Our local hub is located …..( mention location).

As well as offering face to face and online clinical support to young people who may be facing challenges to their mental health and wellbeing, they also work in the community, supporting schools and other organisations to support young people and their mental health.

Jigsaw is an early intervention and prevention youth mental health organisation – they work with young people and those around them to support mental health before problems become overwhelming. There will always be people who need more intense support with their mental health, but making mental health part of the conversation early can help prevent a lot of problems from becoming more serious. As a whole-school working together, we want to be part of the supports that young people have. One Good School is a way of Jigsaw working with the whole-school community to build mental health knowledge and skills so that problems can be addressed early on.

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What do we know about youth mental health?

What hurts?

This slide is an opportunity to tell parents a little bit about the picture of youth mental health in Ireland

Let’s talk a bit about what we know as a country about youth mental health.

The My World Survey 2 was published by Jigsaw and UCD in Nov 2019. Over 10,000 students from different secondary schools across the country took part in completing this survey. The purpose of the MWS-2 was to build and improve knowledge and understanding of Youth Mental Health. The survey supports Jigsaw to understand how best to engage with and educate our communities and the OGS initiative is part of this approach.

Young people were asked what are the things that hurt their mental health and what are the things that can help their mental health.

Here is what young people said were the things that hurt their mental health.

We now know from the My World Survey that mental health is a primary health issue for young people and it is a topic that our school is also invested in. That’s one of the reasons that we have decided to take part in the One Good School initiative.

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What do we know about youth mental health?

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Jigsaw | One Good School™ ©

This is an opportunity to tell parents about the importance of a young person having One Good Adult in their life that they can connect with, when they need someone to turn to or someone to talk to.

Even outside of OGS, the mental health and wellbeing of young people can be supported by having One Good Adult in their lives.

One of the key messages from the My World Survey was the importance of young people being able to connect in with one good adult in their lives. This was often a parent or other family member, but was also a teacher, guidance counsellor or even a sports coach.

Emphasise the importance of young people reaching out for help to someone they trust – no problem is too small. Just listening to young people without judgement can be a huge help.

Parents and teachers can all be One Good Adults in the lives of young people.

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Why have we decided to take part in the One Good School initiative?

Jigsaw | One Good School™ ©

This slide is an opportunity for you to tell parents why your school has decided to take part in OGS. Below are some ideas, but it is important that you speak specifically about your schools’ reasons for taking part.

Jigsaw recognises that schools are in a good position to support youth mental health – schools have the opportunity to support young people to develop all the skills needed to develop good mental health and schools are places to develop the “whole-child”, not only their academic skills but their social and emotional skills.

Evidence shows that early intervention and prevention for mental health difficulties can protect against future mental health challenges - schools and parents can work in partnership to support young people with this

There is a link to academic performance - learning takes energy and good mental health is essential for this.

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A whole-school approach

Jigsaw | One Good School™ ©

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Jigsaw | One Good School™ ©

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What’s going to happen?

Jigsaw | One Good School™ 2019 | 2020 ©

This slide is an opportunity to tell parents a little about the process for One Good School:

Step 1- One Good School Team

Step 2 – Parent webinars in April and May

Step 3 Self-assessment completed through surveys/focus groups – This is where students, teachers, parent/guardians and our leadership team have the opportunity to express their voice in relation to supporting and promoting mental health and wellbeing in the school.

Step 4 Action plan – From this feedback we identify areas of activity to help strengthen the mental health capacity in the school

Step 5 Workshops/areas of activity – Leadership, teachers, students and parent/guardians across the school will engage and participate in a range of different workshops and eLearning opportunities

Step 4 Review and award – Bronze, silver or gold.

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How can you get involved?

Jigsaw | One Good School™ ©

This slide is an opportunity for you to tell parents about how they can get involved in OGS in your school

Take part in workshops:

Getting involved and fully participating in the workshops will help support and promote your mental health and wellbeing for your son/daughter at home.
These workshops will aim to increase your knowledge and think about being proactive in minding your mental health
Other workshops and eLearning opportunities are available if you would like to expand and learn more outside of your selected OGS workshops. See www.jigsaw.ie

Give us your opinion:

There will be many opportunities to have your voice heard throughout the initiative including surveys/focus groups at the beginning/end of the year and feedback after participating in workshops.

Talk about it with son/daughter/young person, teachers and let other parent/guardians know what’s available for them:

Share the knowledge you learn from the workshops
Talk about what is happening in the school for students, parent/guardians and staff

Talk to your son/daughter/young person about mental health and wellbeing, encourage them to tell you about any workshops or activities that they have taken part in.

Look after yourself – self-care is the starting point for mental health and wellbeing; look after yourself so you can be there for your children.

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What are the next steps for our school?

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Finding the right help for you

1. Jigsaw.ie has articles, videos and other resources, written by Jigsaw Clinicians for young people, teachers and parents https://jigsaw.ie/

2. Jigsaw Online Group Chats are live online discussions on mental health themes, facilitated by a Jigsaw Clinician. See https://jigsawonline.ie/young-people/live-group-chats/ for timetable and registration

3. Jigsaw Live Chat is a new way to get support if you’re aged between 12 – 25 years-old. Our trained staff host 1:1 webchats, Monday-Friday from 1-5pm Login and talk about what’s on your mind or send us an email anytime. Find out more at https://jigsawonline.ie/young-people/jigsaw-live-chat/

This slide is an opportunity to tell parents about the clinical support available to young people from Jigsawonline.ie

It's important to acknowledge that not all young people in the school might attend a workshop or take part in some of the programmes, but that doesn't mean that Jigsaw is not there for them.

There are a variety of ways that young people can access support from Jigsaw, through Jigsaw.ie

The website www.jigsaw.ie is a useful source of information and support for young people, their parents and guardians and people who work with young people. Here you’ll find useful articles and videos on a variety of mental health difficulties a young person may be experiencing, along with information on the range of supports and services available. There are interactive features that young people will be able to use as well (ask a question, webinars/group chats with a Jigsaw clinician; your details will be anonymous).

In addition, a young person can speak directly to a jigsaw clinician via email if they require more support.

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Parent online courses

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