To ask the Minister of Education what plans he has to introduce a compulsory curriculum for schools and colleges on mental health and wellbeing.

The mental health and wellbeing of all our pupils is a high priority for me.

The Education (Curriculum Minimum Content) Order (Northern Ireland) 2007 sets the curriculum out as Areas of Learning with contributory elements from Foundation Stage to key stage 4 (ages 4-16). The Order also sets out statements of minimum contents which schools must teach. However, a key feature of the curriculum is the flexibility that schools have to provide education over and above the statutory minimum that meets the needs of their pupils.

Within the statutory Northern Ireland Curriculum, mental health, self-esteem and wellbeing education is already included within the Personal Development and Mutual Understanding and Learning for Life and Work areas of learning. Pupils are provided with opportunities to develop an understanding of how to maximise and sustain their mental health, self-esteem and wellbeing, including managing emotions and reactions to ongoing life experiences and enhancing self-awareness and developing coping strategies. There are also a number of qualifications at key stage 4 and post-16 which provide opportunities for students to explore issues relating to self-esteem, mental health and wellbeing.

The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment provides curricular guidance and teaching support materials for use in schools on its Wellbeing Hub which contains a range of age-appropriate, up-to-date and relevant resources to support the emotional health and wellbeing of pupils.

Additionally, the joint Department of Education and Department of Health ‘Children and Young People’s Emotional Health and Wellbeing in Education Framework’ was published in February 2021.

The main focus of the Framework is to provide overarching guidance to support those working in educational settings to help them promote emotional wellbeing and strengthen self-esteem and resilience in our children and young people. It is designed to help promote wellbeing at a universal level, through a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach, and then to provide targeted support when needs are identified.