Our school
Looked after, listened to.
Children learn best when they feel safe, known and calm. Wellbeing isn't an add-on at Swiss Gardens — it runs through the day, in named programmes and small everyday habits.
The Wellbeing Room
A warm, inviting space — different to any classroom.
When a child needs a few minutes away from the noise of the school day, they can spend time in the Wellbeing Room with Mrs Halfpenny, our trained wellbeing coordinator.
It's a quiet, calm space — not a classroom, not a sanction — designed to help children regulate, talk, draw or just sit. Some children visit briefly and rarely; others are part of an ongoing programme. Either is fine.
If your child is finding things tough, their class teacher will usually be the first port of call. From there, our SENCO, Mrs Older, and Mrs Halfpenny work together to put the right support in place.
Named programmes
Specific support, specific people.
When children need more than the everyday rhythm, our staff are trained to help. They have had PACE, Just Right and Place2Be Mental Health Champions training, and each programme below is led by someone who works with children one-to-one or in small groups.
One-to-one time.
Our Learning Mentor sees children one-to-one, by referral.
Building together.
Mrs Halfpenny is trained in Lego therapy — children work on a build together, each with a role (Engineer, Supplier, Builder), practising communication, turn-taking and problem-solving in a way that doesn't feel like therapy. The Wellbeing Room has the resources kept ready.
Our school play therapist.
Mrs Horne offers individual play therapy sessions for children, and consultations for parents, on Thursdays. Play therapy helps children explore their feelings, regulate their emotions and build strategies for the challenges they face. Referrals can come from the SENCO, class teachers or parents. Play therapy students from the University of Roehampton also do their placements here, mentored by our SENCO, so more children can get this support.
Mental Health Champions
Five trained adults around the school.
Five of our staff have completed Place2Be Mental Health Champions training. That means there are five adults across the school day who know what to look out for, who children can go to, and who know how to escalate to the right person.
It's not a club or a uniform — it's a set of skills woven into the staff team. Children may not know which adult is "trained" — but the adults know each other, and they know how to work together when a child needs support.
Around the day
The small habits that add up.
Wellbeing isn't only the named programmes. Smaller, calmer rhythms run through every classroom and every week.
- Worry boxes and question jars in classrooms — a way to ask without putting your hand up
- Mindfulness and relaxation activities woven into the school day
- A monthly wellbeing calendar with simple, age-appropriate activities
- Mental Health Awareness Week, every year
- Kindness recognition — celebrating small acts, often
- Partnerships with external charities, NHS services and West Sussex family teams
Talk to us — early, gently, in confidence.
The earlier we know, the more we can do. Most conversations start with a quick word at the school gate or an email to the class teacher.