Launch of schools project

Thousands of primary schoolchildren in Liverpool will benefit from an innovative new project to help improve their mental health and emotional wellbeing.

Seedlings, an early intervention therapeutic service, is being launched by award-winning social enterprise PSS and the Young Person’s Advisory Service.

The joint initiative will offer more than 120 primary schools within Liverpool access to therapeutic services, providing an environment in which children feel safe enough to explore and express difficult feelings and experiences.

Seedlings is being launched with funding from the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), and is an early intervention programme that aims to tackle mental health and emotional problems in young children to avoid issues getting worse as they get older.

Lynn Learman, service manager of PSS’s Spinning World project, said: “Sometimes when children are growing up changes at home or at school can be difficult to deal with. The Seedlings team support the emotional needs of children, allowing them to develop and grow and to build their own resilience.

“Difficult feelings can affect relationships with important people in our lives. When these feelings are expressed in therapy it becomes easier to understand and make sense of them. It is through this understanding it is hoped that children can come to terms with their difficult feelings, feel empowered and find new ways to express themselves.”

Play therapy, counselling and art therapy are among the techniques that will be used to work with children, with parents or carers being able to directly refer their children to the project via their school.

Nicky Martin, counselling and psychotherapy service manager at the Young Persons Advisory Service, said: “Early intervention is the key to assisting children to reach their full potential.

“Expression through art and play with the support of an experienced therapeutic practitioner can heal emotional difficulties, leading to healthier relationships, more enjoyment in life and improved educational attainment.

“Practitioners working closely with parents, carers and teachers supports the resilience building process enhancing the child’s capacity to feel safe to learn, grow and take part in their community.”