States of Mind works alongside young people In school and community settings to co-design more effective forms of mental health support and to research and address the social and systemic causes of young people's distress. We design early intervention programmes that respond to the underlying issues contributing to poor mental health, wellbeing and quality of life for young people. We provide an alternative to the medical and diagnostic model of responding to young people's emotional and psychological difficulties by giving young people the autonomy to design and contribute to their own solutions to the challenges they face.
States of Mind provides young people with early access to programmes that provide them with a non clinical, therapeutic space to learn about themselves, develop self awareness and a positive sense of personal identity from an early age. Co-designed over 4 years with over 300 young people, Selfology is an educational alternative to the medical model of mental health that makes psychological theory and practice accessible to young people from an early age.
We also deliver participatory action research projects, that enable young people to explore the systemic issues impacting their mental health and to develop solutions. For example, we have delivered a 4 year project exploring the impact of the UK education system on young people's mental health, wellbeing and personal identity. This has led to the development of an alternative education evaluation framework, called the Review for Progress and Development that provides an alternative to the Ofsted inspection Framework.
We provide consultation and training services to staff working with young people, to support them to provide holistic wellbeing support to young people in their settings.
