Understanding SEMH for Children & Young People

SEMH stands for Social, Emotional and Mental Health. That’s just a grown-up way of saying your thoughts, feelings, friendships, and how you’re doing inside your mind and body. If you’ve ever felt:

• Like your emotions are all over the place
• That it's hard to make or keep mates
• Or you often feel sad, worried, angry, or like you don’t belong...

...then SEMH might be something that affects you. And that’s okay, loads of people feel this way, even if they don’t talk about it.

There are loads of reasons someone might need extra help with their mental health. For example:

• Things at home don’t feel safe or calm
• You've been bullied or hurt
• You feel lonely or have loads of big worries
• You didn’t get the love, attention or support you needed growing up

Everyone shows their feelings in different ways, but if SEMH is something you're dealing with, you might:

• Feel anxious, upset, angry or on edge most of the time
• Get angry really quickly or feel like crying for no reason
• Find it hard to trust people or feel close to others
• Feel like you don’t fit in or want to hide from the world
• Worry so much it makes your tummy hurt or your mind feel stuck

You’re not “bad” or “naughty”, your brain and body are trying to deal with big stuff.

When you’ve got a lot going on inside, it’s hard to focus, sit still, or even want to go to school. You might fall behind or feel like school just isn’t for you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t do well; it just means you need the right kind of support.

Here’s the good news: with the right help, things can get better. You can feel calmer, more in control, and even start to enjoy school and life again. Here’s how:

💬 1. Learn about feelings

Use feeling charts, games or even memes to understand your moods. Knowing the names for your emotions helps you handle them.

👍 2. Get support that feels kind

Having people cheer you on: teachers, parents, support workers can make a massive difference. Clear rules + kind words = you feeling safer.

👫 3. Hang out with people who get you

Spending time with mates or grown-ups who actually listen and care can help you feel more secure.

🧘‍♀️ 4. Try calm-down tools

Breathing slowly, chilling in a quiet spot, or squeezing a stress toy can help your body calm down when things feel too much.

📅 5. Stick to routines

Knowing what’s coming up, like what lesson’s next or what’s for lunch helps your brain chill out.

🎭 6. Practise social skills

Try acting out tricky stuff, like joining a game or saying sorry with someone safe first. It helps when the real moment comes.

🧠 7. Talk through your thoughts

If your brain keeps telling you unhelpful stuff (like “I’m rubbish” or “Everyone hates me”), talk it out with someone who can help you see things differently.

🏃‍♂️ 8. Move your body

Jump, stretch, dance, run, whatever works for you. Moving your body can shake off stress.

👩‍🏫 9. Work with helpful adults

Sometimes, having a chat with a school counsellor, therapist or support worker can really help. They’re trained to listen and support without judging.

When SEMH is ignored, kids can end up feeling:

• Like they’ll never catch up in school
• Lonely or unsafe
• Stuck in constant worry or anger

But when you get the right help and people around you who care, things start to shift. You can:

• Understand yourself better
• Build stronger friendships
• Feel proud of how far you’ve come
  

• SEMH is all about how you feel inside, how you get on with others, and your mental health.
• It’s not your fault if you struggle, you deserve support.
• With the right tools and people, you can feel stronger, happier and more understood.