Written by 
I am intending to keep this month’s blog about Mental Health Awareness Week relatively brief. There are two reasons for this. First, I claim no authority or expertise on mental health, how to maintain a positive state, how to diagnose, treat or support mental health challenges clinically or otherwise. Second, I would much rather any readers here spend their time clicking on the link below to discover and engage with the truly outstanding resources and features produced by the Mental Health Foundation and updated for this week:
Mental Health Awareness Week | Mental Health Foundation
At John Taylor MAT, we have supported Mental Health Awareness Week for several years, and 2026 has been no exception. Yesterday saw colleagues in our central team taking part in the “Wear it Green” campaign, and many of our schools are doing likewise during the course of the week.
In previous years our promotion of this campaign, and our dissemination of the materials available as a result of it, has generated some very positive and profoundly personal feedback. We can be confident that the role we feel obligated to play to support children and young people, their communities, and our colleagues does make a difference.
I will close with a quotation from the truly remarkable Blaise Pascal. A mathematician and physicist of true genius, and an individual who cared deeply about the suffering of those around him, wrote this his Pensées (“Thoughts” – a series of notes and entries into his journals only published after his death):
“The heart has its reasons, which reason knows nothing of”.
Despite his incredible intellect and powers of rationality and critical thought, he appreciated that we are more than emotional and intuitive. Not random or chaotic – but, at least in part, unmeasurable. For me, our mental health and that of those around us is best seen as a facet of our innate humanity – and, as such, is to be cherished.
Thanks, as always, for reading – and take care.
Mike.
You must be logged in to post a comment.