Safe Minds, Strong Schools Initiative

Safe Minds, Strong Schools Initiative

Providing expert consultancy and training to schools on managing current digital and wellbeing risks.

Explore Our Services

Led by Marilena and David, professionals with extensive experience in child psychology policing, we bring together specialist insight from mental health and frontline safeguarding to help schools confidently support students in today’s always-connected world.

Our Approach

Empower your team and families with more than just digital safety — we support schools in creating confident, trauma-informed communities where children feel safe, seen, and supported.

Covering general safeguarding, neurodiversity, emotional resilience, and the brain-behaviour connection, our sessions equip adults with the knowledge to protect and empower young people in every environment — online, in school, and beyond.

We partner with schools and organisations to embed sustainable approaches to student wellbeing and digital resilience. From whole-school mental health strategies to online safety audits and leadership coaching, we help you plan with purpose and lead with clarity.

When challenges arise — from online harm to safeguarding concerns — we offer calm, experienced support to help you respond, recover, and reflect. Our crisis service includes immediate guidance, emotional support, debrief sessions, and post-incident learning.

Clear, accessible, and practical — we help schools create or refine safeguarding, wellbeing, and digital policies that actually work on the ground. We also develop custom resources, toolkits, and frameworks tailored to your school's needs and culture.

Offers ongoing, expert safeguarding and mental health support for schools — giving you priority access, trusted guidance, and peace of mind all year round.

Why it matters

Impact on Mental health

• Urgent referrals of children to emergency mental health services have tripled since 2019. (YoungMinds, 2023).

• 87% of children aged 10–15 go online every day, with many spending over 4 hours per day on screens outside of school (Ofcom. 2024).

Impact on Schools and Education Systems

• A survey by the Early Intervention Foundation found that 50% of UK secondary school teachers do not feel confident in addressing the mental health needs of pupils. Additionally, 65% reported not receiving any mental health training in the past year. (EIP, 2021). Click here to read more.
• The 2023 Behaviour in Schools report surveyed 6,500 teachers in the UK and found that:
> 37% of respondents have experienced physical abuse or violence from pupils in the last 12 months;
> 90% report verbal abuse or violence from pupils;
>89% feel the number of pupils exhibiting violent and abusive behaviours has increased;
> 93% say the number of pupils verbally abusing staff members has increased.

• 70% of school staff report a lack of time and training to manage safeguarding issues effectively
(Ofsted / NASUWT reports) 

Click here to read more.

Online Safety

• Reports of online grooming increased by 82% in the last four years
(NSPCC, 2023).

• 29,000+ children were flagged by social services as being at risk of criminal exploitation — including county lines.
(Children’s Commissioner, 2023).

• Sexual communication with a child (online or offline) rose by 82% since 2017.
(NSPCC, 2023).

• 43% of UK teens said they’ve received a nude image they didn’t ask for.
(Internet Watch Foundation & Ofsted joint briefing, 2023).

• The Internet Watch Foundation found more than 275,000 reports of child sexual abuse imagery in just one year — the highest ever recorded.
(IWF Annual Report, 2023).

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Why Us

Our work is built on a unique and complementary partnership — a Child Clinical Psychologist and a Counter Terrorism Police Officer, combining frontline experience with extensive mental health expertise. Together, we bring a 360° understanding of the challenges children face both online and offline. With backgrounds in trauma, safeguarding, law enforcement, and education, we offer schools practical, informed support that’s grounded in real-world insight and professional credibility.

Click here to find out more
About Us

We work with whole school communities — from senior leaders and safeguarding teams to classroom staff, parents, and carers. We also deliver engaging, age-appropriate training directly to students, helping them build digital resilience, emotional literacy, and a stronger sense of wellbeing. Whether you're shaping policy or supporting a child day to day, we’re here to help you create safer, healthier spaces for young people to thrive — online and offline. 

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