Stratford-upon-Avon College and merger partner Solihull College & University Centre have hosted well-being events for their students as they approach the new year.
The mental health team across the Stratford-upon-Avon, Blossomfield and Woodlands campuses have offered free mental well-being workshops to their students to aid them with specific areas of their mental health.
During early December, the team invited in external mental health organisations to help run the sessions. The sessions were open to all students on all courses.
Online support service ‘Kooth’ were invited in to talk to students about their services and how students can access them. These sessions covered how to manage students’ reaction to anxiety and stress and ‘The Power of Kindness and Empathy.’
Health focused charity, ‘Health Exchange’ ran sessions on Sleep Hygiene, Managing Anxiety and Low self-esteem.
A ‘Mindfulness’ session was also led by CWPT NHS.
The Samaritans ran a session focused on Emotional Health, Wellbeing, and Self-Harm. This helped students to identify the signs they might experience when feeling down and the things they can do to help cope. They also highlighted their services how to access them.
These sessions were attended by over 600 students, and they really helped them understand their own mental well-being. One student commented: “The session really helped me recognise what I could be suffering with.” Another student said, “They offered great advice on how to manage anxiety and highlighted different help sites that could help us.”
The College’s mental health team offer additional support for students who need it, alongside a dedicated safeguarding team and counselling service.
In December 2024, the College launched ‘Spectrum Life’ a 24/7 mental health and well-being support service that is available to all students. Spectrum Life is an app that students can access featuring lots of different services and content available.
Mental Health Lead, Fathima Ashraff-Ali, commented: “These sessions, along with the launch of Spectrum, demonstrate the College’s ongoing commitment to mental health and wellbeing, whilst also serving to increase staff knowledge and understanding. We will continue to strive to offer the best possible service across our campuses.”
