Pastoral Support

Pastoral care is an important part of our school community at St Michael’s. Our Pastoral Manager is here to provide a warm, supportive and welcoming presence for pupils, families and visitors.

We aim for our Pastoral Manager to be:

Friendly, approachable and welcoming to parents, carers, pupils and visitors, helping everyone feel valued and supported.
A positive role model who demonstrates kindness, respect, compassion and professionalism.
Professional and appropriate in their interactions with pupils, while building positive and trusting relationships in an informal and supportive setting.
A caring and reassuring presence within our school community, helping pupils to feel safe, listened to and valued.

Our Pastoral Manager

Meet Mrs Ann Fredericks

My name is Mrs Ann Fredericks, and I am the Pastoral Manager, Home–School Support Worker and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead (DDSL) at St Michael Catholic Primary and Nursery School.

I play an important role in supporting the wellbeing, safety, inclusion and development of our pupils and their families. Working within the Catholic ethos of our school, my work is guided by Gospel values of compassion, dignity, kindness and service.

Working in Partnership with Families

A key part of my role is to build strong and positive relationships between home and school, helping to ensure that every child has the opportunity to thrive. I support pupils and families with a range of areas, including:

Emotional wellbeing and pastoral support
Attendance and punctuality
Behaviour and positive relationships
Family support and Early Help
Removing barriers to learning
Safeguarding and child protection
Supporting children and families who may need additional help

I work closely with pupils, parents and carers, school staff and external agencies to identify concerns at an early stage and ensure that appropriate support is put in place. This may include coordinating Early Help and Child in Need processes, supporting safeguarding referrals, maintaining accurate safeguarding records and, importantly, ensuring that children’s voices are heard, valued and acted upon.

Safeguarding and Supporting Our Community

As Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead, I work under the direction of our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) and Senior Leadership Team to contribute to a strong and effective safeguarding culture across our school.

I am committed to ensuring that our pupils feel safe, listened to, respected and cared for, while supporting families through times when they may need additional guidance or help.

Our pastoral work reflects the mission of St Michael Catholic Primary and Nursery School: to educate and nurture the whole child, recognising the dignity and uniqueness of every individual and our belief that every child is made in the image and likeness of God.

Get in Touch

If you would like to speak with me or book an appointment, please contact or visit the school office, who will be happy to arrange a suitable time.

I look forward to working with you and supporting our children and families.

Pastoral and Therapeutic Care

At St. Michael Catholic Primary and Nursery School, we are committed to supporting the emotional well-being and positive mental health of all our pupils. We offer a range of pastoral and therapeutic services designed to help children develop the skills, confidence and resilience they need to thrive.

Some of our support takes place within the classroom, while children who may benefit from more targeted support can access individual therapeutic sessions outside of the classroom.

Our wellbeing and pastoral support includes:

LEGO Therapy
Drawing and Talking
ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant)
Play Therapy
Meditation Through Prayer
PSHE Sessions
Circle Time
Trusted Adults
Mindfulness and Colouring Activities

Through these approaches, we aim to provide a safe, nurturing and inclusive environment where every child feels listened to, valued and supported.

New Parent and Carer Video

Children’s Healthy Weight

A recorded workshop to support parents and carers to understand childhood obesity and how to incorporate healthy eating and healthy choices into family life.

https://youtu.be/ljIm6SaGto8

KOOTH - New Sessions for Key Life Transitions

Alongside our regular sessions for parents and carers, we are now offering tailored webinars for individuals living in Medway only and are over the age of 18 who are either:

Perinatal (expecting a child or recently given birth)
Leaving the care system

These sessions are designed to provide support, practical advice, and information about the services we offer to help navigate some of life’s biggest challenges.

Each session lasts one hour and offers a valuable opportunity to connect, learn, and access guidance in a supportive environment.

Parent and Carers information session. Booking form
Professional information session. Booking form
Medway Perinatal and Care Leavers information session Booking form

School Nursing Team Leaflet 2024.pdf

FREE Food List

Please find attached a copy of a FREE Food List which has other organisations who offer Free Food help in Medway.

If any Parents who may need additional help during next week when School and Medway FoodBank are closed, please see the list.

It would be advisable contact Food Support Centres before turning up - just to check whether their timings remain the same over the Christmas period.

Hopefully this will give those in need another way to get help if you find yourselves in a crisis situation.

Free food sheet for all clients - 2023.pdf

Kids Eat Free

Early Help for Families

There are organisations and services across Medway that can support you and your family and strengthen your relationship Medway provide support early on and as soon as it is needed to help families thrive and resolve any challenges you and your family may be facing before they become too difficult to manage. This newsletter provides the latest usual information direct from Medway Council.

Early Help support

If you want to discuss Early Help, you can contact your local Children and Family Hubs.

You can contact the helplines Monday to Thursday from 8am to 5pm or on Fridays from 8am to 4.30pm. The helplines are closed during weekends.

Chatham All Saints Children and Family Hub: 01634 338 833
Gillingham Children and Family Hub: 01634 338 877
Strood Children and Family Hub: 01634 335 533
Wayfield Children and Family Hub: 01634 337 733.

Early Help support within school

Please speak with our Home School Support Worker: Mrs Ann Fredericks

Early Help - Family Solutions informations leaflet

Medway Child Health Team: Workshops – New Recorded Sessions

Supporting Dads and Men’s Mental Health

Following feedback from an online survey of parents and carers, the Child Health Team has developed a new set of recorded sessions to support the needs of families in our community.

Parents and carers highlighted the need for sessions specifically aimed at dads, as well as resources focused on men’s mental health and wellbeing.

We are delighted to be working with Laura Burke Training to bring you a new series of three practical and supportive sessions:

Navigating Fatherhood
Men’s Mental Health
Managing Stress and Building Resilience for Men

The sessions are available to watch at a time that suits you via our Child Health Parents YouTube Channel.

Laura Burke Training
Child Health Parents YouTube Channel

MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT & RESOURCES

Support for Children, Young People, Parents and Adults

If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health, help and support are available.

YOUNGMINDS – Mental health charity supporting children, young people and their parents
Text: 85258 (24/7) | youngminds.org.uk

CALM – Campaign Against Living Miserably
Phone: 0800 58 58 58 | thecalmzone.net

SHOUT – Free, confidential mental health support by text
Text: 85258 | giveusashout.org

PAPYRUS – Prevention of Young Suicide
Phone: 0800 068 41 41 | papyrus-uk.org

SAMARITANS – Emotional support for anyone experiencing distress or struggling to cope
Phone: 116 123 | samaritans.org

MIND – Mental health information, advice and support in England and Wales
Phone: 0300 123 3393 | mind.org.uk

SANE – Support and information for people affected by mental illness
Phone: 0300 304 7000 | sane.org.uk

DAD SPACE – Free mental health support for dads
Phone: 07787 535598 | Email: Info@DadSpace.co.uk

NELFT Mental Health Support and Contact Details

If you or your child is experiencing a mental health crisis

If you are experiencing a mental health crisis or require out-of-hours support, please call:

NHS 111 – Select option 2 for mental health support
NHS 111

If you are concerned about your child or young person and their mental health needs are becoming more urgent, please also contact:

NHS 111 – Select option 2 for mental health support
NHS 111

Need someone to talk to?

If you are looking for emotional support or simply want to talk to someone, you can access free, confidential support 24 hours a day by texting:

Text “Kent” or “Medway” to 85258

This service is provided by SHOUT and is available 24/7.
SHOUT

In an emergency

If there is an immediate danger to life or safety, call:

999

You can also go directly to your nearest Accident and Emergency (A&E) department.

Support for people who are Deaf

If you are Deaf and experiencing a mental health crisis, you can contact the NHS 111 Deaf Line:

0300 555 1110

You may need to use a BSL interpreter or third-party tra

Child-Friendly Medway

Child Friendly Medway

All Saints Community Hub

The All Saints Community Project Trust was set up in 2001 and became a registered charity in 2012 (Register Charity Number: 1170179)

The Community Project (also known as the Magpie Centre) provides a range of services for the local community to help support them through times of crisis, to offer a warm space and friendly faces and offer them some hope that the future will be brighter. Located in Magpie Hall Rd, Chatham we work with other charities, organisations, and community groups to provide a safe place for support, help and advice. Here’s what we offer:

Advice Appointments – We offer free non-judgemental advice appointments, these are for clients to get guidance on Benefits, Budgeting, Debt, Signposting and form filling.
Practical Support – We have Medway Foodbank operating from our community centre on a Monday & Friday. Our advisors can issue foodbank vouchers and Medway Foodbank can then put together their food parcel this all takes place in the same building. This is a drop-in service no appointment needed.
Community Café – Our café is primarily run by volunteers; we offer low-cost food & drink and a warm welcoming place for people to come to. We have different organisations come to the café to offer support and services to our customers these include Medway Recycling Team, NHS Hep C Testing Team and Southern Water.
Community Groups – We run a number of groups during the week these are: Coffee Morning, Depression & Anxiety, Uniform Swap Shop, Knitters & Stitchers and Have A Go craft group. These are open to all and help to reduce loneliness in the community.
Computer Suite – We have 6 computers that are available for the public to use free of charge Monday – Friday. This helps people who don’t have access to the internet.
Other organisations – We have a variety of other organisations that use the centre, including MVA & Riverside. We also have MEGAN CIC, the mental health charity, who have offices in our building and use our community space to host their coffee afternoon.

https://www.allsaintscommunityproject.org.uk/

ALL SAINTS COMMUNITY HUB

ESBA

EBSA Leaflet.pdf

Operation Encompass

AI (ai) Virtual Friend

AI-based chatbots that stimulate human-like interactions, like Replika, constantly push people (and sometimes manipulate) to share more and more personal, intimate, sensitive data.

Kids, teens, and people with mental health issues will be especially vulnerable, although anyone can be a potential subject of harm.

Q. Is Replika AI safe?

If you are using Replika AI safely, it can be a helpful tool for learning, creativity and companionship. However, it is important to be aware of the risks before using the app.

1. ai-virtual-friends pdf POSTER.pdf