Massage in Schools Programme
a versatile and inclusive child to child massage programme
Vital Sense aims for Children to:

Be Happy

Be Healthy

Stay Safe

"Massage makes me feel happy." - Girl age 8 years.

"I am no longer being bullied and now have more friends " - Boy age 6 years.

"He likes to give me a shoulder massage if I'm stressed" - Parent of boy age 6 years.

In the last financial year (06/07) over 631,000 prescriptions were given to children under 16 for depression and other mental– health related disorders. In the mid –1990`s, the number was 146,000.

In 2004, the Office of National Statistics found that approx. 1 in 10 children suffers from a form of
mental-health disorder.

In 2007, 42 per cent of 1,700 11- to 16-year-olds surveyed by the NSPCC said they had been victims of violence at school and 75 per cent had been bullied at school - In 2005, 10 per cent of girls and 22 per cent of boys between 11 and 16 said they had been victims of physical attack or assault (Youth Justice Board)

Adults tend to view the world of children as happy and carefree. After all, kids don't have jobs to keep or bills to pay, so what could they possibly have to worry about? Plenty! Even very young children have worries and feel stress to some degree. Stress is a function of the demands placed on us and our ability (or sometimes our perceived ability) to meet them.

While some stress is normal and even healthy, children today seem to encounter many stressful life events at earlier ages.

The Massage in Schools Programme (MISP) has been developed to fit in with the culture acceptable in schools today. It is a daily 10-15 minute, inclusive and established universal child to child (age 4- 12 years) massage programme, incorporating strokes with child friendly names. Children remain fully clothed and work on the back, arms, head and shoulders. The adults in the educational establishment do not massage the children, but facilitate the massage and observe.

Respect is the key to the programme. Children must have the permission of the recipient before starting any massage. This empowers children to exercise the right to say no if they so wish. Children also thank their partner for allowing them to do the massage.
Although the programme instructors encourage child empowerment through daily choice of engagement, parents are informed of the benefits, before the programme is introduced into individual classes.

“The Massage in Schools Programme is a fun whole school preventative strategy for promoting respect and reducing bullying. It is a strategy that I feel should be considered by all primary schools.”
- John Stead NSPCC Education Advisor and ABA coordinator for West Yorkshire. 2005

The programme is being used successfully in schools and children's organisations throughout this country as part of Personal, Health, Social and Citizenship Education (PHSCE) and the Healthy Schools Award (Emotional health and well-being). It also contributes to Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) and the objectives of Every Child Matters. Children`s workers are finding it a useful extended schools activity.
The programme is also spreading worldwide as studies and observations are simply amazing.

What children say about massage in schools

What Staff say about massage in schools