A HEAD teacher has impressed the Duchess of Cambridge after telling the royal about mental health work being done in her school.

Vanessa Thomson was invited to Buckingham Palace for a special reception honouring people who support people with mental health issues.

And the star-studded event was attended by young royals Prince William, Kate and Prince Harry.

She was put forward for the honour by Place2Be, a charity working in Oakwood Primary School to improve children’s mental health.

Mrs Thomson said: “I was really honoured to be asked, especially as I was one of a group of just five from Place2Be and was the only one from Scotland.

“It was really quite a big deal for our school that I spoke to the Duchess and the rest of the staff and school are really delighted about it. For us, it is about whole family support, we work with parents too because mental health is for all, and children supporting one another.”

Glasgow Times:

Place2Be is a children’s mental health charity providing in-school support and expert training to improve the emotional wellbeing of pupils, families, teachers and school staff.

The charity works directly with more than 282 primary and secondary schools across Wales, Scotland and England.

Oakwood Primary, in Easterhouse, has various initiatives to support young people’s emotional and mental wellbeing.

Mrs Thomson said: “I was introduced to Catherine and spoke to her for quite a while. I told her about our peer mediators and our strong school ethos for wellbeing.

“I really highlighted Glasgow’s kids and talked to her about the importance of Place2Be and how it impacts our school.

“Catherine was really lovely to talk to and she asked interesting, intelligent questions. I got a strong sense from her that she knew a lot about the subject but was also asking the questions that would help her to understand and fill in any gaps in her knowledge.”

Mrs Thomson took the opportunity to invite the Duchess to Oakwood Primary, in Easterhouse.

Enthusiastic school janitor James Hood even wrote a rap to celebrate Mrs Thomson’s visit to Buckingham Palace.

The popular jannie has recorded a video of himself performing the song, which has been entertaining people on YouTube.

The reception was held to mark World Mental Health Day and was hosted by television presenter Stephen Fry, who is president of the charity Mind, who made a speech to the gathering.

It comes after Antonine Primary head teacher Wendy Cameron met with Kate after winning the Head Teacher Award at the Place2Be Welling in Schools Awards in London. Mrs Cameron took the top award last year for her commitment to supporting emotional wellbeing in her school.