What Pastoral Leads Should Do Now to Get Ready for 2025
As we approach 2025, pastoral leads face an increasingly difficult challenge. The rising number of students struggling with emotional and behavioral issues, often stemming from anxiety, means that traditional methods of support are no longer enough.
Pastoral leads and their teams are stretched thin, spending hours in 1:1 meetings that are not always effective.
But what if there was a more efficient way to support students while freeing up your time and empowering them to take control of their emotional wellbeing?
In this blog, we’ll explore how pastoral leads can use their time more effectively, cut down on ongoing pastoral care requirements, and ensure that teachers can refocus on their classrooms.
Cut Down on Ongoing Pastoral Care Requirements
Pastoral Leads and Well Being Teams are often trying to manage a growing caseload of students with behavioural and emotional needs. Their increasing 1:1 and small group sessions are often time-consuming and may not be able to provide the long-term solutions such intense efforts require.
Is there a way to help them reduce their workbook whilst also introducing the support you want to offer?
You want to help those with personal challenges to look at their concerns in a guided but structured way that lets them work independently.
Mindfulness based workbooks can help those students struggling with varying topics to look at key areas.
First the Pastoral Team will identify the root cause of a student’s challenge. It may be that Anger is an on-going concern, or perhaps they are struggling with thoughts of self-harm or finding it hard to handle personal change in their lives.
Instead of continually meeting with each student, pastoral leads can offer students these workbooks. This helps the students to work through things at their own pace. The Team can be confident that the topic is presented in an empathetic way, with structured exercises and new suggested coping mechanisms.
Whilst cutting the students ‘some slack’ in 1:1 appointments, they can stay in touch as they work through exercises at their own page.
Now, when feeling anxious or overwhelmed, students can instead engage with the Mindfulness in Schools workbooks to help them manage their emotions. The Pastoral Team no longer has to be their first line of defence.
This frees up hard-pressed staff to work with other more urgent students, cuts down on Mindfulness in Schools Series the freedom to work independently on personal areas.
It’s a shift from reactive to proactive care.
Enable Teachers to Return Their Attention Back to Their Classes
Teachers often have to interrupt lessons to address behavioural issues caused by anxious students. This can disrupt the learning environment for the entire class, affecting the overall academic performance.
These kinds of disruptions often take teachers away from their primary role: delivering lessons.
it’s not the students’ fault. They can’t be blamed when they haven’t yet learned any safe way of dealing with their feelings.
They’re in a spiral of panic, pushed buttons and reactions. The problem occurs when they ‘act out’ their emotional way of handling their panic whilst in a class with their peers.
It disrupts the flow of lessons and, in turn, impact the overall performance of both their classmates, and their teachers.
The answer? Help students to become more self-sufficient and self-reliant in managing their feelings.
That’s a win-win for everyone in the loop.
Teachers will have more time to deliver the curriculum.
The increased time in undisturbed teaching will improve the students’ learning ability. Good dynamics will be restored as teachers are able to give their full attention again to engaging with their students and delivering the curriculum.
Improved overall classroom performance can increase information retention. In turn, this can enhance the likelihood of improved results.
And with challenging students able to regulate their own behaviour, you’ll also see a reduced need for Teacher or Wellbeing Intervention
All this can trickle down ultimately to league tables.
Take Action Now to Prepare for 2025
In the face of rising student anxiety and behavioral challenges, pastoral care teams must adapt to meet demand
By taking proactive steps now—whether it’s implementing mindfulness workbooks, empowering students to manage their own emotional needs, or addressing the root causes of anxiety—schools can free up valuable pastoral time, improve student wellbeing, and set the stage for better academic outcomes in 2025.
If you're ready to take the next step and support your students more effectively, I invite you to explore my Mindfulness in Schools program. These resources will help your students build emotional resilience, reduce their reliance on 1:1 pastoral support, and help create a calmer, more focused school environment. Together, we can equip students to face their challenges head-on, setting them up for success in the year ahead.