Q and A with Avani Bhalla
We spoke to 16-year-old mental health campaigner and one of the winners of the Pearson World Changer Awards, Avani Bhalla, for her view on young people’s wellbeing today and what more can be done in education to help.
The Pearson School Report
The Pearson School Report provides an in-depth, independent look at the education system, from the people who work at its core – and is the latest step in our mission to collaborate, listen and learn from each other to drive forward positive change.
Persona Life Skills
We’ve partnered with Persona Education for a pioneering pilot, which will test how effectively life skills can be developed and recognised using digital methods, while assessing how students, teachers and employers value social-emotional skills, and the related digital badges.
We're passionate about creating a culture of positive wellbeing and mental health and are committed to working together with teachers and senior leaders to help build healthy, calm and happy schools.
Together we can drive positive change, encourage conversation, and create an environment that fosters wellbeing for pupils as well as staff.
Mental health and wellbeing at Pearson
Within Pearson, we’ve been working with Time to Change to break down the stigma around mental health and wellbeing, and change the culture and conversation.
Mental health and wellbeing support
In uncertain and stressful times, it is natural to feel a certain amount of concern or worry. Practising mindfulness can help you stay calmer and more positive. We have a number of free resources to help introduce you to mindfulness techniques that are suitable for employers, Clinicians, parents and young people.
If you feel that you or someone you know (be they a parent, child, teacher or young person) are at immediate risk of causing harm to themselves or others, it’s important to seek immediate professional help by calling 999.
However you or someone you know might be feeling or going through, it’s important to know you’re not alone. There’s lots of information and support services in the UK to help.
Recent news and blog posts
-
-
What does a whole-school reading culture look like?
‘If I visited your school’, I often ask teachers and school librarians, ‘would I know that it’s a school that values reading… before I got to the library?’ (This assumes the library’s lively, well-stocked, welcoming, and used). ‘Would I see photographs of a recent author visit on your entrance area’s computer screen? Would I see, at child’s-eye level in the corridors, jumbled book titles, ‘children’s picks’, and author bios? Are there poems in unusual places, like the back of toilet cubicle doors?
-
Reading and writing for pleasure
Do you remember reading and writing for pleasure during your school days? Perhaps your class had a cosy nook for devouring books during breaks – or maybe a teacher enthused you with the joy of making up your own stories just because. If so, you may not realise what a great springboard that was for later life.

