Nurture Support and Well-Being

At Whitwick St John, children’s emotional and physical well-being is at the heart of what we do.

The school team, including teachers, teaching assistants, learning support assistants and our trained ELSA aim to support all children to ensure they can thrive not only in school but also at home.

We have a trained ELSA who is our school’s pastoral manager.  They have a designated room called ‘The Nest’.

What is ELSA?

There will always be children and young people in schools facing life challenges that detract from their ability to engage with learning. Some will require greater support to increase their emotional literacy than others. Emotional literacy is about understanding and coping with the feelings of ourselves and others. It involves developing high self-esteem and creating positive interactions with other people. Being emotionally literate helps children to focus better on their learning and has a positive impact on their general happiness and well-being.

ELSA is an initiative developed that recognises that children learn better and are happier in school if their emotional needs are also addressed. ELSAs are specialist members of staff with a wealth of experience of working with children with emotional needs.

Which children are supported by the school ELSA?

The school ELSA becomes involved following a referral from either the class teacher or a parent once an emotional need has been identified. If the need has been identified by the class teacher, they will consult with parents before any ELSA work is carried out.