THE wellbeing of pupils and education staff is being supported in innovative ways in the Wee County during the coronavirus crisis.

Clackmannanshire Council's Educational Psychology Service has adapted to provide support for families during the nationwide lockdown.

Support and guidance was always available on the phone but the hours have been increased as face-to-face contact is not possible at this time with all schools closed.

Whitney Barrett, principal educational psychologist, said: “We know that many families will be struggling with anxieties around what is happening and our children often respond to these anxieties by behaving in ways that are difficult for parents to cope with, so we wanted to make sure we were as accessible as possible at this time.

“The current situation with Covid-19 is stressful for everyone – adults and children – and it’s not possible for us to maintain our social connections the way we normally do at this time.

“We’ve been using what we know about how stress affects us, particularly in relation to learning, in the advice we are providing to parents, teachers and managers within the council.

“This will hopefully mean that the mental health and wellbeing of our young people is well supported during the school closures, meaning they’re in the best possible place to re-start their learning when the schools re-open.”

On top of the helpline, see contact details further below, a range of support and learning opportunities are being provided, including online wellbeing sessions for education staff, online learning materials to enhance staff knowledge and expertise as well as online lessons for pupils to teach them about the brain and how it responds to stress.

Whitney added: “However, our main focus at the moment needs to be on helping parents and pupils manage the stress they may be experiencing – if we don’t, then our brains aren’t able to learn anything new and the impact of the school closures will be felt for much longer.

“It’s okay to rest, take time to relax and do things that help us to de-stress.

“We don’t expect parents to become teachers overnight and to fill six hours a day with new learning for their children.

“Sometimes having a cuddle on the sofa and reading a book or watching a movie are just as important.

“As many other people have said recently, in years from now, our children will remember how safe and reassured we made them feel, rather than what formal learning they did at this time.”

Call the Educational Psychology Service on 01259 226 012 or text 07966 824 737 to arrange a call back between Mondays and Fridays, 9.30am to 12.30pm.