Burnley High School pupils help to bring colour to the lives of those less fortunate

Bridget Carnie, Kaitlin Seddon, Jacob Dutton and Joey Fisher from Year 8 at Burnley High School

Runners completed 20 laps of the school yard during the final week of term, with staff throwing brightly-coloured paint powder at set intervals.

Thanks to sponsorship from friends and family, the event raised £225 for the charity.

Suzanne Bethell, CANW Practitioner for Emotional Health and Wellbeing, is stationed at the school throughout the week and is on hand to help any of the 400 learners with their emotional wellbeing.

Head of Year 8, Sam Bradley-Green, explained how it was the children themselves who wanted to host a fundraiser to give something back to the charity.

He said: “Having our own CANW hub has been integral to everything we’re trying to achieve with our learners and Suzanne’s been a fantastic resource for us as a school. Everything she does to support our learners with any level of mental health issues has totally changed how we look after them.

“Everyone from students to staff is really keen to give something back to the charity as they’ve done so much for us since they came into school. The children are noticeably a lot happier and this was the perfect way to round off our school year – they’re even making plans for fundraising when we return in September, which is really nice to see.”

Sue Cotton, chief executive of CANW, said: “Figures show that one in ten children aged 5 – 16 in Lancashire experience low level mental health issues, but only a quarter of those who need treatment will receive it.

“That’s why we’re developing our Emotional Health and Wellbeing service, including in-school interventions like at Burnley High School, which will help children address their worries at an early stage before they become part of a bigger issue.”