Schools and Colleges Early Support Service
Online mental health and wellbeing support to help your whole school or college community thrive.
Mental health support for secondary schools and colleges
Our Schools and Colleges Early Support Service ensures your students aged 11-25 get the right mental health support at the right time. With one-to-one support sessions for students, plus support for staff, parents and carers, we'll help your whole secondary school or college be mentally healthy.
The service provides:
timely one-to-one sessions for students experiencing mild-to-moderate depression and anxiety
online consultations and webinars for staff, parents and carers
support from specialist practitioners with clinical expertise
evidence-based approaches informed by the latest research.
Why use our Early Support Service?
Half of mental health problems start before the age of 14, and three quarters begin by the age of 24.* Secondary schools and colleges can play a vital role in supporting students’ mental health and wellbeing at an early stage. With over 70 years of mental health expertise, we translate pioneering mental health research into support that works.
Working with students with mild-to-moderate mental health issues prevents mental health problems from escalating, improves your setting's attendance and attainment and helps students achieve their potential.
How our mental health service helps
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71% of students report reduced anxiety and depression
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90% of parents and carers gain useful skills and knowledge
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89% of staff find support sessions helpful
What’s included
Through our whole school or college approach, we offer three kinds of support.
1. Support for students
Our specialist practitioners help your students develop self-care strategies to improve and maintain their mental wellbeing. Refer your students for:
6-8 online support sessions (ages 11-25)
one-off online consultations (ages 16-25).
Your students can access support whenever they need it with our library of on-demand webinars. Topics cover the breadth of challenges young people face, including managing anger, dealing with negative thoughts and overcoming exam stress.
2. Mental health support for school and college staff
We help your teams to support their own and their students’ wellbeing. Staff can access:
up to two individual online consultations per term
on-demand support webinars covering topics such as staff wellbeing and emotionally-based school absence.
3. Support for parents and carers
We help parents and carers develop the skills and knowledge to nurture good mental wellbeing at home. Parents and carers can access:
one-off online consultations
live and on-demand support webinars covering topics such as supporting young people with low mood and helping young people manage anxiety.
About our mental health practitioners
Through the service, your students can speak confidentially with experts in children and young people’s development, emotional wellbeing and mental health.
All our practitioners are specially trained to support students with mild-to-moderate mental health needs including depression and anxiety. They draw on vast clinical experience in specialisms such as counselling, psychotherapy and youth work, and follow evidence-based approaches to help your students take good care of their mental health.
The impact of our service
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On students
“I feel great now. I can’t see myself going back to the place where I started, but if I do, I feel confident that I know what to do, who to speak with [...] and how to access support if I need it.”
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On parents and carers
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have given my son so many positive strategies that he can use throughout his life. I felt like I had lost my boy and it made me feel so helpless. You have [...] given him his life back and bought him back to me. I am forever grateful”.
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On staff
“It has particularly helped some pupils who find it difficult to communicate on a face-to-face basis and are quiet and reserved in this context. [...] they have come away with a toolbox of strategies that work for them moving forwards.”
What does it cost?
Pricing is tiered based on the size of your school or college. We subsidise this service to accommodate all budgets and offer you value for money. Flexible payment options can also help you to spread the cost across the academic year.
Express your interest
Register your interest by completing our online form below and one of our team will be in touch. Or you can contact us at info.scess@annafreud.org
Please note, primary schools are not eligible to join this service.
Help and guidance for young people
We can only accept direct referrals from young people whose schools and colleges are signed up to this programme.
If you are a young person and you need urgent support, use the Anna Freud Crisis Messenger service to receive support from a trained volunteer.
For more information and options for advice, treatment and support, visit our resources for children and young people.
Further support for schools and colleges
Alongside our clinical service, we have a range of support to empower education staff with the knowledge they need to support children and young people. Our evidence-based training courses are developed and delivered by clinical and education experts. We also provide free resources covering a range of topics including developing a whole-school approach to wellbeing, anti-racism resources and teaching materials on mental health.
Find out more