You only have to go as far as your social media pages to see how much momentum #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek is getting at the minute, and it’s not really surprising. 

The lockdown is forcing us all to live and work in unconventional, confined, and in some cases life-changing, circumstances right now.  

And with increased recognition of these challenges - particularly within the education sector, school leaders are being directed to free guidance on how best to support staff wellbeing in places that they didn’t even know to look. In that vein, I wanted to share some of the best tools and practical tips that I’ve seen from across the sector...

Imagine if someone said to you at the beginning of the year: “In a couple of months you need to be ready to deliver remote learning to the majority of your pupils because the country will be on lockdown due to a global pandemic.” I’m guessing you would either laugh, cry or head to the nearest bar. (Remember those?)

“Can everyone go on mute”, “How do I share my screen?” and “I’ll meet you on my link” are common phrases anyone managing a remote team will be all too familiar with.

School leaders, however, haven’t typically fallen into this group until recently,  and are only just discovering the charms and challenges of remote working amid partial school closures. Nevertheless, in true sector spirit - they are adapting at pace and sharing their tips with the rest of us.

Maintaining a good dynamic with parents is no mean feat at the best of times. So how do you manage it when your community is spread between skeleton schools and home learning environments?

It’s a challenge, but true to form - schools are rising to it and sharing their best practice with the rest of the sector. We spoke with several school leaders, as well as our colleagues at The Key to bring you these expert tips on communicating with parents during COVID-19: