Supporting Our Staff

We are proud of our incredibly supportive team, but we know peer support isn't always enough. When personal or professional challenges arise, dedicated, focused support is always available.

Staff working in Kirklees schools have access to a variety of formal internal services, council-backed programmes, and targeted local mental health networks.

• Kirklees Employee Healthcare Service: Based at Rowan Bank in Huddersfield, this dedicated service offers independent occupational health support. Staff can be referred or contact them directly at employee.healthcare@kirklees.gov.uk or 01484 226424.
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP): Provides 24/7 confidential phone lines, management support, information services, and structured confidential counselling options. For many council-linked schools, this includes access to providers like Care First. https://www.carefirst.co.uk/
• School Workforce Wellbeing Toolkit: Developed jointly by HR, Employee Healthcare, and regional unions, this central resource serves as a "go-to" hub for physical and mental self-care strategies tailored for local teaching staff. 
• Kirklees Keep in Mind (MHST): This NHS-designed Mental Health Support Team operates across select primary and secondary schools in the region. While their primary focus is delivering early intervention for pupils, they are explicitly tasked with supporting and training school staff to handle student mental health challenges, reducing operational burnout.
  When seeking help outside of the school setting, staff can leverage broader Kirklees-wide public networks:

  • Working Together Better Partnership: A collective of local voluntary sector services offering mental health and wellbeing support paths throughout Kirklees.
  • Brain in Hand: A digital support system commissioned specifically by Kirklees Council to assist individuals struggling with heightened anxiety, workplace stress, or decision-making.
  • Mental Health Training Courses: The council offers structured courses to local professionals, such as suicide bereavement training delivered via https://www.leedsmind.org.uk/cation Support EAP: Many independent schools and academies across Kirklees bypass council programs to contract directly with Education Support, a dedicated UK charity supplying specialized, 24/7 education-focused staff counseling and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). https://www.educationsupport.org.uk/get-help/help-for-your-staff/employee-assistance-programme/