Inverness Royal Academy pupils reconnect with their classmates in mission to boost mental health
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Inverness Royal Academy have gone face-to-face with their toughest teacher yet: Mother Nature.
Connecting as a team to take on mountains, lochs, wintery weather and dark skies – in a mission to mark Children’s Mental Health Week with The Outward Bound Trust Loch Eil.
As part of their five-day Outward Bound residential, they got to explore some of the wildest corners and tallest mountains the British Isles has to offer. Taking a break from TikTok, technology and textbooks to focus on raising their confidence, developing resilience, and practising supportive relationships outside the classroom.
Their trip occurs in the wake of the pandemic and a cost-of-living crisis where many young people’s mental health has reached breaking point. With a recent report uncovering that over half (51 per cent ) of Britain’s young people feel less confident in their future now than pre-pandemic, and a further 40 per cent feel less in control of their lives than before.
Inverness Royal Academy’s Outward Bound experience is designed to combat these worrying stats by immersing young people in nature and empowering them with the most important lesson they could ever learn: to believe in themselves. The relationships developed on their residential will also help strengthen the connection they feel with school, as well as building a culture of support and cooperation in the classroom and with their peers.
Morven Neil, depute rector at Inverness Royal Academy, said: “If we want anything for the young people of Inverness Royal Academy, it is that they are happy, healthy and high achieving. And, If we want happy and resilient young people, they need to learn about mental health and wellbeing.
"By taking time away from the classroom and exposing them to adventure, we can create moments for our students to do just that. Building a stronger connection; working positively with others – some of whom might already be their friends and others who will become new friends – and learning in an outdoor environment and all the wellbeing benefits that it brings with it. By supporting Children’s Mental Health Week and visiting Outward Bound, we can help instil a message within them all, that they are capable of more than they know."
Inverness Royal Academy is the largest school in the Highlands and was the first secondary school in the region to be awarded Silver Rights Respecting status by putting children’s rights at the heart of everything it does as a school. It is only in recent years that such an approach has been recognised as being fundamental to young people’s health and wellbeing, their academic success and their participation in society as active citizens.
Children's Mental Health Week was founded in 2015 and occurs each February. The theme this year is ‘Let’s Connect’, with a focus on the importance of meaningful human connections and their role in developing good mental health. Outward Bound’s mission is to inspire young people so they can achieve more than they ever thought possible.
