Thrive

22/06/2026

June is Pride Month and we want to wish all of our young people, families, colleagues and followers a happy Pride 2026! 🏳️‍🌈

Here at all children and young people up to the age of 19 years old, from Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale, are welcome to use our service without fear of discrimination or judgement. We are an inclusive service that celebrates diversity and individual differences 💚✨

💭 "Gay and LGBTQ+ young people are disproportionately affected by poor mental health, experiencing significantly higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation than their heterosexual peers. However, identifying as LGBTQ+ does not inherently cause mental health issues; rather, these disparities are primarily driven by external factors like discrimination, bullying, and fear of rejection." - Action For Children 2025.

We work sensitively alongside organisations like The Proud Trust to support young people who may have questions about their sexuality and/or gender identity 🌈

19/06/2026

Encouraging children to talk about difficult feelings through play can be really effective. These photos are from one of our sessions this week where Lego and fidget toys were used to support engagement 💚

11/06/2026

Sometimes explaining exactly what a session for a young person looks like at isn't easy because our approach varies to suit each individual's needs. However this photo shows our wonderful and creative counsellor, Georgina, in action 💚

10/06/2026

Thank you for this lovely reminder, from a young person who uses our service 💚

04/06/2026

The deadline is tomorrow! Share your nominations at the link in the comments, it means a lot to us 💚

Not long to get your nominations in 🗳️

The deadline is Friday 5 June to share who you think should win a Pennine Care People Award, including the community choice and eight other categories for colleagues.

Visit our website or drop us a message for more info

04/06/2026

🧠💦 Sensory overwhelm/overload occurs when the brain is flooded with more information from the senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch) 👀🔊👅👃🏼🐈 than it can process. This is a core feature of sensory processing differences, which are highly common in neurodivergent people such as those with autism or ADHD however all individuals have sensory needs.

🥊🏃🏼‍♀️🧊🦌 Overwhelm triggers an involuntary fight, flight, freeze or fawn response. This can result in anger/irritability, a desire to escape, shutting down, or a sensory meltdown.

Sometimes this can look like poor behaviour in children. As parents, there are things you can do to support children through periods of sensory overwhelm 🎧😍🕒🛋️

03/06/2026

💜 Our parent/carer bereavement workshops are now running on the fourth Tuesday of every month 💜 Give us a call to book on.

Please note, these workshops are for parents and carers only and not for children and young people.

22/05/2026

😟 For children, of all ages, change can feel really scary and anxiety provoking - whether it's moving house, transitioning to "big school", making new friends or finishing A Levels. Even exciting changes such as going on holiday or starting a new hobby can trigger worry and anxiety in some children. As parents, there is a lot you can do to help them through it 💚 you've got this 💪🏼

21/05/2026

Wonderful 😊 well done Rochdale Borough Council 💚

A few months ago, you may recall we put a callout for talented knitters to join council staff in creating ‘Worry Monsters’ to support our children and young people in talking more openly about their worries.

These cuddly, knitted toys help children and young people process and manage their feelings by encouraging them to write or draw their thoughts and place their worries inside the monster’s mouth or pocket. This helps their problems to feel smaller and easier to share with trusted adults.

Since then, we’re really pleased to share that the ‘Worry Monster Project’ has gone from strength to strength and we are now working with members of the local community, businesses and the Rotary Club in Heywood to knit even more.

We’ve already started distributing them to children and young people in foster care and in our children’s homes too.

A huge thank you to everyone who is supporting the project, including Cleland McIver and Laxtons for their kind donations of filling and knitting yarn.

20/05/2026

Following on from Mental Health Awareness Week, we are loving this poster sharing information about eating disorders 💚

The national Beat helpline (0808 801 0677) is open 24/7, 365 days of the year, if you or someone you know is struggling 📞

Credit:
Su***de Awareness / Prevention UK