This year’s Children’s Mental Health Week takes place Februrary 3-9th.
As more children in care are affected by mental health issues, Virtual Memory Box is supporting Life Story Work, to help young people’s mental health.
A report from the Children’s Commissioner found that “The mental health of children has deteriorated markedly in recent years. Some groups of children have particularly poor levels of mental health. Half of looked after children (49%) had ‘borderline’ or ‘cause for concern’ scores.”
Making and keeping positive memories has a huge long term impact on the lives of children in care.
Family Fostering Partners says, “Memories play a role in shaping a person’s identity. For children in foster care, positive memories can help them develop a sense of self-worth and help them to piece together the story of their life. The memories created during childhood can have a lasting impact on a person’s overall well-being and mental health.”
Virtual Memory Box MD Christian Brock says, “Virtual Memory Box isn’t just a ‘nice to have’ platform to look at photos on, it really is a vital tool in developing a young person’s identify and making sense of their journey. It supports Life Story Work, which is crucial to helping the mental health of young people in care. Virtual Memory Box makes sure that those important positive memories and experiences are captured forever, and can be reflected on and talked about, not just throughout childhood but into adulthood too.”
A report from What Works for Children’s Social Care found that Life Story Work can really help young people’s mental health.
“Life Story Work aims to give children a structured and understandable way of talking about themselves and helps them build a sense of self-worth and to develop a record about themselves they can refer to and carry with them through life… children and their caregivers can value life story work as an opportunity to work through emotions and explore identity, and to improve their relationships. One study linked life story intervention to decreases in children’s externalising behaviours.”
Children’s Mental Health Week takes place from 3-9th February. For more information go to https://www.childrensmentalhealthweek.org.uk/