5 Steps to Mental Health and Wellbeing

No – the 5 Steps framework is completely free and doesn’t require you to log in. Each step provides guidance, practical actions, case studies and supporting resources that schools and colleges can explore and use at any time. 

Alongside the framework, we also offer a free action planning tool to support consistent planning across your setting. You’ll need to register and log in to access the action planning tool, as it allows you to input information, review your progress against each step, update your plan over time and download your results. 

While the framework and tool are separate, they’re designed to work together. We recommend using the action planning tool alongside the framework to help structure your approach and support whole-setting progress.

To use the action planning tool, you’ll first need to register for a free account. Once you’re signed in, you’ll be able to complete your own self-assessment using a red, amber, green (RAG) rating system. The tool helps you reflect on where your setting is now, identify areas to strengthen, and review progress as part of your whole-school or college approach to mental health and wellbeing. 

The tool is designed to support realistic, sustainable progress. Some actions will take longer than others, and that’s expected. You can revisit your plan every three to six months to update your ratings and track improvements over time. You can also print your results for internal planning or reporting purposes. 

Many schools and colleges choose to include the tool within their broader development or improvement plans as a way to show their commitment to mental health and wellbeing. 

Please note: we advise that you don't include any identifiable personal or sensitive information in your action planner, as we use the information you share with us at an aggregated and anonymised level to help us improve the 5 Steps Framework and its content for all users. 

Yes. Multiple people can log in to the same account on different devices at the same time and access the shared action planner. If one person makes an update, others will see the change once they refresh their page. 

At present, each account is registered to one individual with one job role, even if it is accessed by more than one colleague. This means the tool can be used collaboratively within a setting, but there isn’t currently an option to create multiple linked user accounts under one school or college profile. 

The 5 Steps framework is designed to be used flexibly. While all five areas are important, there’s no expectation to follow them in a specific order. You can begin with the step that feels most relevant to your setting’s priorities and build your approach over time. 

There’s no fixed timeframe for working through the 5 Steps framework. Every setting is different, and the time it takes will depend on your priorities capacity and starting point. Some schools and colleges focus on one area at a time, while others work across multiple steps. The framework is designed to support ongoing reflection and improvement so you can move at a pace that feels right for your setting. 

There are two key pieces of guidance which recommend taking a whole-school or college approach to mental health and wellbeing. Our 5 Steps framework has been written in accordance with these. 

The first is from the Department for Education and what was then Public Health England (now the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities), who co-created guidance which outlines eight key principles for a whole-school or college approach to mental health. These eight principles all align with one of the 5 Steps. 

The second piece of guidance comes from NICE, whose ‘Social, emotional and mental wellbeing in primary and secondary education’ report recommends that schools take a whole-school approach as a core recommendation:

Adopt a whole-school approach to support positive social, emotional and mental wellbeing of staff, children and young people (including people with a neurodiverse condition) in primary and secondary education.” 

While there is no one piece of statutory guidance on mental health, there are a number of statutory mental health requirements for schools included as part of guidance on related topics. 

Key areas include:


• Safeguarding - schools must safeguard students’ mental and physical wellbeing as outlined in Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE). 

• RSHE curriculum - the RSHE curriculum requires schools to cover certain topics related to mental health and wellbeing. The specific requirements differ for primary and secondary settings.   

• Ofsted framework - the personal development section of the current Ofsted framework notes that inspectors will make a judgement on the personal development of learners by evaluating the extent to which: “the curriculum and the provider’s wider work support learners to develop their character – including their resilience, confidence and independence – and help them know how to keep physically and mentally healthy” .

• SEND Code of Practice - schools must comply with the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Code of Practice, ensuring that mental health needs are identified, assessed and supported. These responsibilities are part of a wider commitment to helping all students thrive.