Be Herd

Be Herd's mascot is 'Ellis the Elephant', who will hopefully be the only 'Elephant in the Room' 

Be Herd was launched with the opening of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Hub in the school library, this has become a space for our pupils, staff and local community to use to either have a quiet space just to chill or to talk to one of our Mental Health Ambassadors ('Elefriends'). To promote the launch of Be Herd, the group held some of the most memorable, thought provoking and emotional house assemblies ever witnessed in the school, where a number of pupils and staff told some personal stories of events that had happened in their lives.   The group would also later present part of their assembly to Primary 7 pupils attending their transition week at the Academy.

In April 2019, the group held a concert, where as well as telling some of their personal stories, pupils also performed a number of musical items. The concert was attended by a number of local dignitaries, including our local MSP, who raised a motion in Parliament congratulating the group for getting their message out there. 

The excellent work by the group to date has led to them being nominated for and winning both a West Lothian Council Stellar Award and a COSLA Gold Award.   They have also been invited to attend the Scottish Parliament to address a group of MSP's and officials to share the work they have being doing so that their message can be spread all across Scotland.   

The hard work doesn't stop here though, as on a daily basis, the group continues to raise awareness of and remove stigma of mental health issues in Whitburn Academy and the local community.