Stowupland High School hosts inspiring Wellbeing Week to support their young people’s health
Stowupland High School recently hosted a Wellbeing Week for over 200 students, dedicated to learning about staying safe, building healthy relationships, and supporting their mental health.
Students in Years 8 and 10 had an afternoon off-timetable to learn from five different providers each day on topics from water safety and sexual health to online safety, Violence Against Women and Girls awareness and more.
Event highlights:
• Suffolk Police: They presented, to Year 8s, crucial information on online safety, emphasising the importance of not trusting unknown individuals online and understanding consent related to sharing images. Their lively sessions often include music and dancing.
• Kooth: Provided sessions to Year 8s and Year 10s about the services they provide for young people.
• RNLI: The session focused on showing the Year 8s how to identify signs of danger and things to look out for when swimming in the sea.
• Teenage Mental Health: Delivered a session to Year 8s around the mental health services they offer for young people.
• Suffolk Sexual Health Service: Highlighted the services they offer to young people in Suffolk and where they can go if they need sexual health support.
• Turning Point: Presented a session on the different types of drugs and the bad affects they can have on your body to Year 10s.
• MHST (Mental Health Support Team): Spoke to Year 10s about how to look after their mental health using a Mental Health Abacus.
• Restore WA: Discussed how to spot and report red flags in any relationship to Year 10s.
• Everyone Active: Delivered Netball Workshops over two lunch times.
• The Mix youth workers: Presented a session to Year 8s on Violence Against Women and Girls, what young people understand about this and how they can report it.
The afternoon created a relaxed and supportive environment where students explored important topics, asked questions, and discovered valuable resources to help them look after their wellbeing both in and out of school.
The afternoon sessions were held in Stowupland High Schools' Sixth Form building where the years were split into five groups with a maximum of 35 students in each group. Providers were given 20 minutes to deliver their session before the groups moved round the building in a carousel to their next session.
The idea of a wellbeing event for the students began in 2024, with a desire to offer the students something different to support their wellbeing in and out of school, to increase their understanding of wellbeing and how, engaging in and with a range of activities, benefits them.
2024's wellbeing event was a success, although on a much smaller scale. The event consisted of several lunchtime activities including an open-air library, games and drop-in style information session. Two year group assemblies were also delivered focusing on the importance of sleep.
With the support, time and effort of the providers, 2025’s event has grown substantially, delivering more content and reaching more young people. It is hoped 2026 will continue to grow, being able to deliver sessions to a wider audience and involving more providers.
The feedback so far from staff and students has been positive. The staff from Stowupland High School praised the mix of providers, the content being delivered, and the general feeling and pace of the afternoon. It was felt the information given was at a high level and all providers were engaging and knowledgeable.
Rachel, Year 8 Progress Lead, said; “Thanks so much for organising this event for the Year 8s. It was amazing to hear and learn from these brilliant providers. The kids really enjoyed it.”
Emma Bowden, schools link youth worker for The Mix, who is linked with Stowupland High School and organised the event, said; “Both afternoons had a lovely vibe. The students engaged well with all the providers and learnt something new.
“A big thank you to everyone who supported the event, staff and students at Stowupland High School, and the wonderful providers for giving their time.”
Some student feedback:
“The lifeboat session helped me learn how to stay safe.”
“The Police session showed how much you can learn from just one picture.”
“I didn’t know Kooth was anonymous—and how fast things can spread online!”
