Here at St. Mark’s Primary School, we understand that from time to time family life can have its complications. There may be times when just a little extra support can help a family to get things back on track. Early Help means providing support as soon as a problem emerges, at any point in a child’s life, from the foundation years through to their teens.   

Our approach to Early Help at St. Mark’s is rooted in the excellent relationships we enjoy with parents and carers. We aim to ensure that families feel confident approaching the school for help and guidance.  Parents can make an appointment to see the Class Teacher, Headteacher or SENDCo at any time, and we will always endeavour to provide support at school or signpost parents to external services. 

Below is a list of the support and services that form part of our Early Help offer:  

• We are a THRIVE school! Thrive is a therapeutic approach to help support children with their emotional and social development.  The Thrive approach offers practical strategies and techniques and is built around online assessments which identify children’s emotional development and provides action plans for whole class and individual needs.  Research has shown that how we behave is linked to how we feel and our emotions are linked to how we learn.  By teaching children to recognise and notice these feelings and emotions it can help with their development and learning. Children sometimes need some extra support with their emotional growth and this can be temporary or over a longer period of time.  Thrive promotes their emotional and social growth by building positive relationships between a child and their peers and helps them explore and understand their feelings through various activities. 
• Taking the time to listen to children’s concerns. We have two pastoral leads, who are Miss Andrews and Mrs Hollingsworth, and they are available to chat to pupils when they feel they have a problem they would like to share. Staff will always feedback to parents after a session just to make sure they are kept fully in the loop. 
• Staff have received Restorative Justice training so to offer a whole school approach to restorative interventions and solutions. 
• Taking the time to listen to families. Our Assistant Headteacher is Senior Mental Health Lead trained and will lead on Inclusion and Pastoral Care. She is available to support children and their families through tricky and difficult situations.  
• Regular meetings (weekly, biweekly according to need) between parents and Headteacher and/or Pastoral Lead and/or Class Teacher to support families. 
• Class Teachers are available on the school playground every day. 
• We provide morning and after school activity clubs, and there are a range of extra-curricular clubs that children can attend in order to help develop skill and self-esteem. 
• Financial support for trips, uniforms, residential trips, clubs etc. (pupil premium funding), 
• Active School Council to seek pupils’ views. 
• We have an effective PSHE, SMSC and RSHE curriculum which supports children and develops key skills not only for school but for life. 
• A robust system for improving attendance and punctuality – Educational Welfare Officer support. 
• A robust behaviour policy with built in flexibility to support those children for whom behaviour is a challenge. 
• School Nursing Team: You can speak directly with the school nursing team or we can refer you as a school. 
• Referrals and support from County services including: Whole School Inclusion service/ Social, Emotional and Mental Health Service/ Communication and Interaction service for children with specific emotional or behavioural needs. 
• Consultations with the Mental Health Support Team attached to the school. 
• Referrals to the Suffolk Children and Young People’s Emotional Wellbeing Hub. 
• CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) referrals made to support children with mental health needs. 

• CAF (Common Assessment Framework) referrals made to support families. 

 Information to support parents on relationships, Housing, Mental Health, Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND) support is also available at https://infolink.suffolk.gov.uk 

For parenting guidance, support and information about courses please access Suffolk’s Parenting Hub https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/parenting-hub  

 This is not an exhaustive list.  There are a number of support agencies out there who we can access, or signpost you to, if you are experiencing difficulties at home.