After a networking tea, Helen let us know that the Health and Wellbeing Strategy has been updated. Helen shared some of the great things that were achieved in the last strategy, like launching Independent Travel Training, starting the Team Around the School approach to help children return to school, and bringing in Kooth, an online service for mental health and wellbeing support.
Helen also told us about what they are going to be focussing on in the new strategy, specifically things us as children and young people would find interesting. Helen went through the presentation provided by the Health and Wellbeing board so we could discuss what actions we would suggest for each of the priorities in the new strategy. We split into groups to talk about each priority and then shared our ideas with everyone.
When we talked about making Rotherham smokefree, we thought it would help to have smoking cabins or designated smoking zones around the borough. If people smoke outside of those areas, they should get a fine.
We also said smoking shouldn’t be allowed near schools, and there should be more awareness in schools about how smoking and vaping affect your health.
Shops should have stricter rules for selling cigarettes and vapes, and they need to be way better at checking ID properly.
We talked about mental health support, including things like feeling lonely and social media.
We think it’s really important to help people spot the signs early, so sharing online resources and promoting services would make it easier for everyone to know what help is out there.
We also said that schools should do more to raise awareness about mental health and teachers should understand it better and know what support is available.
It would be great if schools had a dedicated wellbeing room too — somewhere that feels safe and welcoming for everyone.
We talked about access to services – including digital and neighbourhood preventative work in Rotherham. We said it’d be better if services were advertised in places people actually go, like libraries or the interchange, so more people know what’s out there. We also thought it’d be good to make TikToks to show what’s available in Rotherham right now. We talked about how important it is to promote environments for wellbeing. Libraries came up as a great spot for people to hang out, meet new friends and find out about local groups. Someone suggested a ‘social bubble’ – a space where people with similar interests can meet and socialise.
We also thought it’d be good if young people could help out at local allotments. It’d be a chance to learn gardening and environmental skills and also support adults who might need a hand.
Another idea was to have more places for older young people to hang out, like skate parks, outdoor areas to explore or areas to build dens and just be creative.
And finally, we talked about doing a walking challenge to get people moving. You could use your phone to track steps and maybe even compete with friends – fun and good for your mental health.
