School of Support in Croatia: promoting resilience, inclusion and mental health

The Croatian county Sisak-Moslavina was hit by a devastating earthquake in late 2020, at a time when schools were already struggling with school closures and distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The School of Support programme was developed in 2021 as a response to these events, and implemented by UNICEF along with the Forum for Freedom of Education with the support of the Croatian Education and Teacher Training Agency.

The programme aims to support the mental health and strengthen the psycho-social and socio-emotional competences and resilience of children, young people and educational workers. It also focuses on creating safe and supportive environments in schools.

So far, 72 schools, 317 teachers and other education professionals and over 11,000 primary and secondary school pupils have benefitted from the programme’s activities. 

The School of Support programme provides school staff with a 40-hour training programme on mental health, how to deal with crisis, stress and trauma in school, and how to better collaborate with parents.

Various pedagogical materials have been developed (available in Croatian), for example:

• Different collections of teaching materials and worksheets on emotional resilience and coping with crisis,
• A leaflet for parents about the programme,
• An academy for school leaders on inclusive school management (55-hour training programme).