Supporting physical and mental wellbeing is at the heart of the curriculum at St Margaret’s School for Girls and as the country returns to normality, it has never been a bigger priority.
St Margaret’s have been committed to engaging with girls throughout the pandemic to ensure they stay fit and healthy at home – using innovative online opportunities – and at school, through sporting facilities and extra-curricular activities.
This year, St Margaret’s celebrates its 175th anniversary. Such a significant milestone has given the school an opportunity to reflect on how society, culture, and the needs of girls and women have changed throughout the generations.
From nursery to senior school, St Margaret’s offers a range of wellbeing activities and encourages an active lifestyle amongst students, as well as looking out for the mental health of all.
Physical education from nursery onwards introduces girls to a diverse range of sporting activities. Teams are entered for competitions in many disciplines and have gained significant successes in a number of sports over the years, including hockey, athletics and horse riding.
Rising to the challenge of online learning at the start of the pandemic, St Margaret’s sought out innovative solutions to ensure that girls kept active at home. With support from a committed PE department, who provided virtual PE lessons throughout lockdown, and a range of at-home activities and challenges, the school ensured pupils had every opportunity to keep up their fitness at home.
Indeed, as a school, St Margaret’s took part in the MOVEmber Millions campaign which saw pupils, parents, staff and former pupils complete one million steps a day in November. From 2,165 entries, the school recorded a total of 37,729,746 steps, raising £800 for Mental Health Aberdeen and Plan International.
During Children’s Mental Health Week 2021, St Margaret’s worked again with Mental Health Aberdeen to launch a Wellbeing Hub online. This set out challenges for the girls to complete at home, gave them a daily boost and highlighted the importance of investing time in oneself to protect and improve both mental and physical wellbeing.
Another of the school’s charity initiatives, the 175 Challenge, launched in May 2021. Inspired by its 175th anniversary and core wellbeing themes – being active, connecting with people, challenging yourself, avoiding unhealthy habits and helping other people – the school tasked its girls to be creative and challenge themselves to do 175 of any specific task or activity.
Students are embracing the challenge; some are cycling 175 miles, some are attempting to do 175 keepy-ups with a ball, and one student is even cycling 17.5 metres on a unicycle! Teachers are joining in too – the head teacher is walking 175 kilometres, while the drama teacher is writing a play with just 175 words.
These are just a handful of examples of how St Margaret’s has encouraged its pupils to stay fit, healthy and active both during and post lockdown. The school hopes to continue to enhance the wellbeing of pupils, ensuring all girls feel supported, encouraged and inspired to lead active, healthy lifestyles.
To find out more about what St Margaret’s can offer your daughter, or to register for our next virtual open day, please contact the admissions office on 01224 584466 or email admissions@st-margaret.uk
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