Lights, Camera, Action!

We were joined by Reellearning, a UK-based film company, that work with NAE to create films to share best practice across the network. At BSKL we have two designated School Wellbeing Leads, myself and Jayde Simms, who have been trained by the Anna Freud Centre to implement a whole school approach to wellbeing. The staff body at BSKL has completed another training from the Anna Freud Centre to learn how to support the wellbeing and mental health of students. Both our specific professional development and our experience put the BSKL community in a strong position to be able to share our wellbeing best practices.

The film crew was on site for a week capturing how wellbeing is embedded into everything that we do. They filmed the explicit teaching of wellbeing through the delivery of the Positive Education curriculum, in-house CPD for staff, leadership, and pastoral meetings, supportive conversations with tutors, specialist support through counseling and learning support, the student council, and our school assembly. For me, the marker of how wellbeing is woven into the fabric of our school really came across when the students were filmed in their everyday experiences - building their resilience through embracing challenges, engaging in critical reflection, balancing their academic success with their personal wellbeing, developing social tools and feeling supported by their community. Particular highlights for the film crew were getting special access to a band rehearsal from our sixth formers and meeting parents Cassandra Philip and Yul Shin Kok who shared their personal experiences of what it means to be part of the BSKL community.

The film crew had a fantastic week meeting staff, students, and parents. They reflected on their experience saying  “Whilst the camera under careful direction can manufacture a positive version of the truth, in my experience, it can’t create it. So a moment or two of self-congratulation is called for, for all the staff that were kind enough to let us reflect their lessons and interview reflections, and every child who was just themselves on a normal day, itself a sign of their own security in school.” 

I would like to thank all staff and students involved in the filming, the preparation, and the logistics for this to happen, and for engaging in the extraordinary practices that we call ‘day to day’ at BSKL.