The Amber Flag is an organisation to promote positive mental health, by reaching out to Primary and Secondary schools, youth reach, third level institution, community groups and companies to create healthy, inclusive environments that support mental well-being. The Pieta Amber Flag enables school and youths across the country to promote positive mental health. 

The Amber Flag:

Our school accepted the challenge of obtaining the Amber Flag for promoting positive mental health and wellbeing. At the beginning of the year, we set up a committee which consisted of students from each classroom and two class teachers. The Amber Flag team met twice monthly and discussed activities we could do for both students and teachers to promote positivity. We highlighted our bright Amber Flag board, updating the school of meetings, events which we hoped to complete by May 2026.

Theme: This year we had numerous goals under creativity and connections.

The Morning Jammers:

We continued the Amber Flag Choir every Thursday morning in Miss Ahern’s room under the name: ‘The Morning Jammers’. Thursday mornings were full of song, movement and laughter. We connected and shared this music with the local community as we performed Christmas carols at the local Christmas Markets. Pupils showcased their creativity by rewriting the song Dreams, even adding an original rap and will be performing this for the official opening of our new AstroTurf pitch.

Groovy Breaktimes:

Lunchtimes came alive with “Groovy Breaktimes.” The children were creative when making up dance routines and singing together. This created a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere for both students and staff as the requests came flowing in for the playlist! Our new bluetooth speaker was put to good use.

Daily Walk and Talk:

To further the children’s connection with nature and one another they engaged in a daily Walk and Talk. The children were given prompts such as ‘my proudest moment’, who has helped me this morning and so on. The children were also asked to connect with elements of nature by noting how we explore and experience nature through our five senses. Outlining signs of nature we could see, hear, smell, taste and feel. The children often availed of local amenities such as the ramp Boreen and the GAA walkway. When the sun was shining, both students and staff took full advantage!

Friendship Benches:

We furthered this connection and creativity with the local community as the Men’s Shed got fully involved. They kindly made benches for the junior and senior yards. These became our ‘Friendship Benches’. These benches on the junior yard are to ensure everyone is included and on the senior yard it is a space to play cards, chess, draw, knit and chat. The Amber Flag committee added their own mark as they painted the junior benches with colourful designs. We are grateful to the local community and the work they do. Thank you to all involved in the Men’s Shed.

Yoga Day:

Finally we closed all our events with a ‘Yoga Day’ encouraging all children to try new things and explore the interweaving of movement and breath to stillness. The children were curious, creative and calm!

Fundraiser: The 6^th class students and Amber Flag team will be holding a jumble sale in June. There will be a bake sale, face painting, races, a long puck, table tennis, raffle and a jumble sale. This was a huge success last year and we are sure to have another fruitful event this June.

The Amber Flag Committee: 2025/2026

Violet O’Donohue, Paolla Vas Ataide, Robbie Hickey, Tiernan O’ Sullivan, Nikodem Plachetka,Erin Tobin, Ella Fuller, Tyler Feeney, Amy Gleeson and Stanley Summer.

A heartfelt thank you to the committee, the school community, and the wider community for their contribution to the Amber Flag for 2025/2026.