Coronavirus: Help children and young people manage their mental health and wellbeing

Did you know that bringing nature into your everyday life can really make a difference to your mental health?

That’s why, as part of mental health awareness week (10-16th May 2021) Wokingham Council is hosting a ‘connecting with nature’ competition.

Entering the competition is simple:

You just need to be a resident of Wokingham, and you need to submit one of the following creative pieces:

• Either a drawing (this can be a sketch, painting or drawing) of anything in nature
• Or a short poem about your experiences in nature.

Use this creative exercise to recognise and grow your connection with nature; reflecting on how it has supported your mental health. This could be as simple as tending to a house plant, listening to or watching birds through a window, smelling flowers or spending time in your favourite nature spot.

The competition will be split into the following categories:

• Age 4 – 11
• Age 12- 16
• 17+ - Adult

The closing date for the competition is 4th June 2021.

Winning entries will be printed and displayed at Dinton Pastures and posted onto Wokingham Borough Council’s Social Media Platforms.

Please send your artwork or poem to public.health@wokingham.gov.uk or post to Nicola Owens, Public Health Team, Wokingham Borough Council, Shute End, Wokingham RG40 1BN. Giving your name, age and contact e-mail address or telephone number.

Terms and conditions

• The competition is open to residents of Wokingham Borough.
• The closing date is midnight on Friday 4th June 2021.
• Please send your artwork or poem to public.health@wokingham.gov.uk or post to Nicola Owens, Public Health Team, Wokingham Borough Council, Shute End, Wokingham RG40 1BN. Giving your name, age and contact e-mail address or telephone number.
• The winning design will be printed and displayed at Dinton Pastures.
• By entering this competition, you agree to your or your child’s design being displayed at Dinton Pastures and shared on Wokingham Borough Council’s social media and other platforms.

NHS website

Visit the Berkshire Healthcare NHS Children, Young People and Families services website for information and advice for you and your family during this difficult time.

West Berkshire CCG have produced an information sheet called #Coping – family life during lockdown – information and advice to help you and your family to cope during lockdown.

The Little Blue Book of Sunshine has been developed for children and young people to let them know some of the things they can do to help their mental health and who to turn to if things feel too much. The booklet can be download from the West Berkshire CCG website. 

Empathy Day - 10 June 2021

For further infromation go to the Empathy Lab website.

Other helpful resources

The following website have useful information on looking after your mental health and well being:

• UK Government - Where can I go for mental health support?
• BBC News
• Young Minds - what to do if you're anxious about coronavirus
• Childline - Games, calming activities and advice videos
• Newsround - How to cope when you can't go to school because of coronavirus
• Save the Children website - 6 relaxation activities to do with children
• Download an interactive book from the Mind Heart website called Covibook which aims to help and reassure children under the age of 7 about the Coronavirus
• Skills for Care have created a leaflet with top tips on talking to people with a learning disability about how they are feeling
• The universities of Oxford and Reading have put together a helpful information guide for parents and carers to help support children and young people with worries about COVID-19
• The Emerging Minds website has useful podcasts around supporting children and young people

10 Minute CBT have developed some free resources for young people aged 12 to 19 but are also of benefit to parents and carers. The e-learning course covers common emotional reactions and explains this using a 10 Minute CBT framework. Along with providing some tools and resources to overcome unhelpful reactions and encourage adjustment and resilience.  

Go to the 10minute CBT website to view the course contents and enroll for free.

Read the Spring 2021 edition of the Families Thames Valley West magazine activity ideas to entertain the children over the lockdown period.

The importance of nature and mental health

Did you know that bringing nature into your daily life can really make a difference to your mental health?

Read the thriving with nature booklet for suggestions of seasonal activities to help you engage with nature. Each activity will have different components that research suggests can be helpful for supporting your wellbeing (such as staying active, connecting with others, or spending time in green spaces). If any of these activities feel like a stretch for you right now, try and notice little bits of nature around you that you may not have noticed before – a houseplant, a painting of scenery or flowers, anything that lifts your mood!

The original publication and the full version of the guide can be found by visiting the Mental Health Foundation website.

Wokingham Borough Council services

Wokingham Borough Educational Psychology Service has put together some wellbeing tips for families in their information sheet called Coronavirus: supporting children's wellbeing.

Wokingham Borough Public Health Team have put together a signposting leaflet to mental health support for children and young people and their parents and carers.

West Berkshire CCG have produced an information sheet called #Coping - young people's guide which has information and advice for young people on how to look after their mental health and emotional wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak.

The Little Blue Book of Sunshine has been developed to let you know some of the things you can do to help your mental health and who to turn to if things feel too much. The booklet can be download from the West Berkshire CCG website. 

E-learning course

10 Minute CBT have developed some free resources for young people aged 12 to 19. The e-learning course covers common emotional reactions and explains this using a 10 Minute CBT framework. Along with providing some tools and resources to overcome unhelpful reactions and encourage adjustment and resilience.  

Go to the 10minute CBT website to view the course contents and enroll for free.

School Nurse Advice and Support Line

You do not have to struggle in silence. The school nursing team are here to listen.

Phone our new advice and support line on 0118 931 2111 and select option 4 to speak to a school nurse.

Helpline open Monday to Friday from  9am until 4.30pm.

It’s ok to not be ok.

Free online counselling

Young people aged 11-18 years (up to 19th birthday) in Wokingham can access free online counselling and emotional well-being support through Kooth.  The service provides a safe and secure way of accessing support from qualified counsellors.

On Kooth you can:

• Chat to Kooth's friendly counsellors
• Read articles written by young people
• Get support from the Kooth community
• Write in a daily journal

For further information and how to access the service go to the Kooth website.

Find out how Kooth can help you by watching the video below 

Kooth - Free, safe and anonymous online support for young people from XenZone on Vimeo.

Watch the Kooth Chat video

Kooth - Chat from XenZone on Vimeo.

The Think you know CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre) website will be producing a home activity pack every fortnight with activities for parents and children to do together to support their online safety.

Other websites with useful information and resources:

• Childline
• Internet Matters
• Safety net kids
• NSPCC - online safety
• My Tutor website has a parents guide to teaching teenagers online safety

Berkshire Healthcare is launching a new school nursing advice and support line for children, young people and their families, to offer health advice and referral into the service for on-going support if needed. The line will be available from 9am until 4.30pm, Monday to Friday.

You can access this service by dialing 0118 931 2111 and selecting ‘Option 4’ to speak to a School Nurse from our team.

Search the community directory for leisure activities

Online activities

Wokingham Libraries will be running the following online activities on our Facebook page:

• Authors online
• Rhymetime – a rhyme a week will be coming out on Friday on our Facebook page
• Virtual Storytime

Go to the Wokingham Borough Libraries website for further infromation on our digital activities.

Teen Reading Challenge

Download one of our challenge cards from our Teen Reading Challenge web page

Read a selection of books following the challenges, you can download ebooks, eaudio and comics for free by logging onto RB Digital from Wokingham Borough LIbraries

Join our libraries online

You can sign up for free library membership by visiting the Spydus website to join our libraries online.

Visit our Libraries Blog for information on activities and our latest newsletter.

Wokingham borough libraries e-services

Did you know you can borrow a range of e-books, e-audio, e-comics newspapers and magazines completely free of charge if you are a library member?

Visit our library section of our website for further information or download the RB Digital app and use your library card number to create a free account with a username and password.

The service allows you to:

• Read and download newspapers and magazines on your computer, smartphone or tablet
• Read the current copy of most daily and Sunday newspapers, many local newspapers and a wide selection of magazines
• Access a selection of newspapers and magazines from all over the world 

Online music

Get access to 15 million songs from thousands of artists through the Freegal Music website.

This service allows you to:

• Listen to music on your home computer, smartphone or tablet
• Stream music for 3 hours per day, and download 3 tracks each week
• Choose from over 15 million tracks from thousands of artists
• Create your own playlists, or choose from existing lists   

Please note: Some of the titles may contain content of a more adult nature. As with all library usage we recommend parents and carers give their child support in choosing appropriate items to match their needs.

Login to Freegal Music with your barcode and PIN, or download the Freegal Music app from the App Store or Google Play Store, then select your library and log in with your barcode and PIN.

Go to our parks, play areas and open spaces around the Wokingham Borough directory listing to view a map of local parks and nature reserves.