Working with schools at a systemic level to develop and promote staff wellbeing – Reflections and practice of educational psychologists within an MHST

Concerns over staff wellbeing in schools is nothing new. A recent exploration of teachers’ views within the UK highlighted that 77% of all teachers who responded to a survey considered leaving education completely in the last twelve months (TES, 2024). This article will briefly look at the current context around staff wellbeing in schools and highlight the key components of a whole school approach to staff wellbeing within an ecological model. It will outline Educational Psychologists’ (EP) reflections about their unique contribution to this work within the context of change management in schools, and then give examples of successful work at the organisational, group and individual levels of intervention. It concludes that to do this important systemic work well, requires time and staff resources.