Children’s Mental Health Week, from 3rd to 9th February 2025, aims to spark a national conversation about the importance of mental wellbeing for young people, reduce stigma around mental health, and create environments where children feel safe, supported, and empowered to share their emotions. This year’s theme, ‘Know yourself, grow yourself’ emphasises the importance of self-awareness in fostering personal development.
Well-known US child psychiatrist and neuroscientist, Dr. Bruce Perry, summarised the interrelationship between mental health, personal wellbeing and social welfare as follows: “Mental health in early childhood is not only the cornerstone of individual wellbeing, but it is also the cornerstone of a society’s stability and success. Healthy children grow into healthy, resilient adults who contribute to the greater good”.
In everyday life, we often see how mental disorders and deviant behaviour in adulthood can be traced back to negative childhood experiences. Inner struggles and how they are expressed afflict not only the individual but also have serious ramifications for the community and society at large. Many people in all walks of life fail to achieve their full potential and struggle to maintain balanced relationships as they are held back by psychological afflictions like anxiety and depression. Further, social ills ranging from road rage and petty crime to xenophobia and violent criminal offences can often be linked to perpetrators’ mental health issues.
Consistent with these insights, Nelson Mandela famously stated: “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.” Mandela strongly advocated for providing children with opportunities to grow in nurturing environments, which is a cornerstone of mental and emotional development. Further, he often stated his belief that the wellbeing and treatment of children are fundamental to the health of a society – that the conditions in which children grow and develop — especially in their early years — are essential to the stability and thriving of a nation.
Unfortunately, South Africa’s soul has some dark corners when it comes to treatment of children, particularly in poor and disadvantaged areas. Evils like abductions and serious accidents due to neglect of children, instances of child abuse, child trafficking, and even child murders feature in our news with distressing regularity. These are extreme consequences when families fail in their duty of care for young children. But there are also many poor parents who want to do the best for their children and who welcome opportunities to learn better parenting skills or resources to help them with the task.
When parenting falls short, for whatever reason, the teacher’s role as caregiver becomes even more crucial. What could be perceived as an unfair responsibility can weigh heavily on teachers whose job – if taken seriously – is already extremely demanding. Many teachers take on this ‘above-and-beyond’ responsibility with great dedication because they love the children in their care. Teachers must prioritise their own mental health in order to effectively support children facing mental health challenges.
Through our work with ECD practitioners and unemployed youth, ORT has become acutely aware of the widespread mental health challenges faced by teachers and young people. In response to noticeable need and repeated requests for support, we have introduced a number of interventions aimed at young people and caregivers of young children:
• Our Youth Employment Service (YES) internship programme includes training modules on emotional aid, and awareness of GBV and substance abuse.
• ORT established principals’ forums in Cape Town in 2023 and in Saldanha Bay in 2024 to provide quarterly networking opportunities for ECD principals and professional development where needs are identified. In each case, the first forum session was devoted to mental health and well-being of principals under the theme ‘Fill your cup’.
• ORT offers support and guidance to students in our Level 4 course for ECD practitioners and youth in our YES internship programme who face personal or professional challenges. The YES youth can access wellness counselling sessions at ORT SA CAPE’s office in Observatory.
ORT’s work is informed by research in disadvantaged communities in South Africa which shows that the causes and effects of children’s mental health problems are often invisible and insidious. A complex range of factors and influences can be involved. The following are key findings of research conducted in recent years that stand out for us:
1. High levels of trauma and stress: Children in these communities often face high levels of trauma—violence, abuse, neglect, and poverty—that significantly affect their mental health, contributing to anxiety, depression, and PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder).
2. Limited access to mental health services: Access to mental health services is limited in disadvantaged areas, exacerbating the challenges faced by these children. Many families lack awareness of mental health issues, and there is a shortage of trained professionals, especially in rural areas.
3. Impact of poverty and inequality: Poverty plays a significant role in mental health outcomes for children. Economic hardship affects not only the material wellbeing of families but also their emotional and psychological stability. Children living in poverty are at higher risk for developmental delays and emotional problems.
4. Role of caregivers and families: The mental health of children is strongly influenced by the emotional and psychological wellbeing of their caregivers. Parental mental health issues, substance abuse, or stress often cause negative outcomes for children. Strengthening family support systems is crucial for improving children’s mental health.
5. Cultural and social context: Cultural beliefs and social norms around mental health may influence how children’s psychological issues are understood and addressed. In some communities, mental health problems may be stigmatized or misunderstood, leading to underreporting and a lack of intervention.
6. Interventions and support: Community-based interventions, including early childhood development programmes, school-based mental health support, and family counseling, have proven effective in improving children’s mental health in these communities. These programmes focus on building resilience, providing emotional support, and offering coping strategies.
At ORT SA CAPE, we believe that early intervention is key. Since 2023, ORT has partnered with Think Equal, a UK-based charity whose programmes promote social and emotional learning in early childhood. We train and support principals and teachers working in Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres serving disadvantaged communities in Cape Town.
Together with Think Equal, our Social and Emotional Learning programme is designed to equip young children with the skills they need to navigate life’s challenges. By teaching empathy, emotional literacy, resilience, and self-regulation, we aim to lay a foundation for positive mental health outcomes.
Children may arrive in classrooms with feelings of rejection and a lack of behavioural control. What we call ‘bad behaviour’ is often due to underlying circumstances – trauma, change in home environment, loss, unfulfilled academic or emotional needs, lack of self-worth, etc. Teacher interactions, understanding and guidance can have profound positive effects on children’s day to day activities and their longer-term.
Values embedded in the Think Equal programmes are empathy, equality, diversity (the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds. Through storybooks and related activities, the initiative equips teachers and parents to foster emotional resilience, promote empathy, and provide psychological support. Teachers are able to integrate these tools into daily lessons, creating safe spaces where children can process experiences and develop coping skills for difficult situations. An online module also invites parents to engage in emotional learning interactions with their children, in partnership with teachers.
Teachers in the Think Equal programme report that children are becoming more aware of their emotions and behaviours, learning to self-regulate along the way. Teachers report positive changes in their classrooms as learners have become more caring and much kinder towards each other. The teachers are also reporting that they find classroom management easier because the children are behaving better. Some parents report that their children are calmer and more respectful. There have also been fewer reports of bullying on the playground. School transport drivers also note that children’s behaviour in taxis and school buses has improved.
Greater emotional awareness and empathy can have reciprocal benefits for children and adults alike. Parents who participate in the Think Equal programme report that their children are more attentive to the emotions of others. For example, children notice more readily when their parents are not happy and ask for reasons for their unhappiness, thereby comforting their parents.
We regularly receive testimonials about benefits that flow from teachers and schools’ involvement in ORT and Think Equal’s Social and Emotional Learning programme. One inspiring account comes from the principal of an ECD centre in Manenberg who reported that the Think Equal programme brought about a profound difference at their school. The school has children from a variety of backgrounds – black and coloured South African children, Asian children, and children from other African countries. Teachers were struck by the way children would exclude and discriminate against classmates from ethnic groups different from their own. Generally, they didn’t want to play with ‘others’ or even sit next to them. As a result, the foreign children, or any child who seemed ‘different’, would end up sitting alone in class and on the playground. This changed after the introduction of the Think Equal programme. Through participating in the lessons and activities, children from all groups gradually became more open to one another. It is now common to see children invite each other to join their play groups, sit together in class, and even share their lunch. The atmosphere in the school has become much more welcoming and cheerful.
As we observe Children’s Mental Health Week, let’s commit to prioritising the mental wellbeing of our children. By embracing programmes like those of Think Equal, we can ensure that every child has the tools they need to ‘know yourself, grow yourself’, leading to a healthier, more compassionate future.
To discover more about how ORT SA CAPE is shaping education through play, click here.
