What is the aim of stormbreak?

The Stormbreak approach aims to raise awareness of how movement can positively support and shape mental health. We provide trusted adults with the tools, strategies, and confidence to help children recognise, validate, regulate, and express their emotions in healthy ways.

Through mentally healthy movement, we seek to create environments where children can flourish — making meaningful, lasting change in their emotional wellbeing. Our goal is to improve children’s mental health through movement, equipping them with sustainable, transferable skills and coping strategies that help them thrive as they grow into adulthood.

Today’s children move less than ever before, while mental health challenges continue to rise. We believe it is our shared responsibility to respond to this growing crisis and better serve our children’s needs. At Stormbreak, we’re finding ways to do just that — inspiring mentally healthy movement to help children become happier, healthier humans, for life.

Stormbreak is underpinned by 7 Principles of Engagement. The principles of engagement are not written in any particular order and are all equally important in the effective delivery of stormbreak:

1. We reduce the stigma about mental health through mainstreaming conversations during movement.
2. We focus on valuing the experience and the process of movement rather than the outcome or performance.
3. We celebrate engagement and interaction where movement is simple, inclusive and accessible to all.
4. We value aspiration and competition with a focus on developing a sense of self-worth.
5. We choose language that develops relationships where the values of respect, trust, kindness and openness are at the core. 
6. We listen carefully and with intent to understand and validate.
7.  We create cultures and environments for movement that foster a sense of connectedness and belonging.

Why mental health through movement?

Today’s children move less than ever before, while mental health challenges are rising at an alarming rate. Movement is not only vital for physical development — it also plays a powerful role in supporting emotional wellbeing.

When children move, their bodies release endorphins, often known as the “feel-good” hormones, which can boost mood, reduce stress, and ease feelings of anxiety. But the benefits of movement go far beyond biology. Through movement, children can express emotions, build confidence, develop social connections, and experience a sense of achievement and belonging.

At Stormbreak, we recognise that movement provides a natural and accessible way to nurture positive mental health. By embedding mentally healthy movement into daily life, we can help children to understand and manage their emotions, develop resilience, and build lifelong habits that support both body and mind.

Mentally healthy movement is about more than exercise — it’s about giving children the space, support, and skills they need to move, feel, and live well.

Watch these videos to find out more:

Why Movement?

What is Movement?

What is a stormbreak?

A stormbreak is a short, movement-based activity designed to support children’s mental health and wellbeing. Each stormbreak focuses on one of the key mental health concepts from our Stormbreak Sunrise model: resilience, self-worth, self-care, hope and optimism, and relationships.

Typically lasting around 10–15 minutes, stormbreaks use movement as a powerful way to engage children in positive, social, and communicative experiences. Through repeated participation, children begin to develop their own strategies to recognise, respond to, and regulate their emotions — learning when to draw on their strengths, acknowledge vulnerabilities, and seek support when needed.

As children grow in confidence to take part in stormbreaks and to talk openly about what they feel, notice, and understand, movement becomes more than just physical activity — it becomes a trusted tool to nurture and sustain positive mental health.

As an organisation, how do I create an account?

Creating an account is super easy and FREE! Visit our login page at: https://www.stormbreak.org.uk/login, choose the ‘organisation’ option, and follow the steps to create an account. If you're the admin of your organisation's stormbreak account, you can invite others to join. For additional guidance, please watch this video.

As a parent/carer, how do I create an account?

Head to our login page at: https://www.stormbreak.org.uk/login, select ‘parent/carer,’ and follow the steps to create an account. Setting up an account is free! For additional help, please watch this video.

How does stormbreak comply with GDPR?

The Charity have implemented appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk. Please read our terms of use and privacy notice for more information.

1. Data Collection and Consent

• Informed Consent: Stormbreak obtains explicit, informed consent before collecting personal data from individuals. Clear information about how data will be used is given.
• Opt-in Mechanisms: When collecting personal data, stormbreak ensures that individuals actively opt-in, so users are not automatically signed up or their data to be used without their direct agreement.

2. Transparency

• Privacy Notices: Stormbreak has a detailed privacy policy in place. This document outlines: What personal data is collected; why is it being collected; how long it will be kept; and who the data will be shared with.
• Right to be Informed: Individuals are informed of their rights under GDPR, including how they can withdraw consent or request deletion of their data.

3. Data Minimisation

• Purpose Limitation: Stormbreak only collects data necessary for our specific purposes.
• Retention: Personal data is only kept for as long as necessary for the specific purpose it was collected. Stormbreak outlines how long data will be held as part of the terms of use and as part of the privacy policy (see section 10. How long we will keep your information) ensuring that data is not kept for longer than needed.

4. Data Security

• Protecting Personal Data: Stormbreak implements security measures to protect personal data from unauthorised access, theft, or loss. Stormbreak has put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed;  procedures to deal with any suspected data security breach, and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a suspected breach where we are legally required to do so. 

Information is securely stored on our servers based in the UK. Personal data is encrypted in transit between your device and our storage providers. Any personal data that you submit to us will be held on secure servers based within the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA).

If we are required to transfer your information outside the UK, we have put in place appropriate measures to ensure that your personal data is treated by those third parties in a way that is consistent with and which respects the EU and UK laws on data protection. 

By registering with us from outside the UK you consent to such transfer as necessary to enable use of our service. If you are based outside the UK we may transfer personal data to any correspondence address you provide to us.

• Data Breach Protocols: In case of a data breach, stormbreak will notify the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) within 72 hours, and if necessary, inform affected individuals.

5. Rights of Data Subjects

• Access, Rectification, and Erasure: Stormbreak allows individuals to request access to the personal data held about them, correct any inaccuracies, and request deletion (the "right to be forgotten").
• Data Portability: At individual requests, Stormbreak will provide their personal data in a commonly used, machine-readable format.
• Objection to Processing: If a person objects to their data being processed for specific purposes (like marketing), stormbreak will respect that request unless there are overriding legitimate grounds for processing the data.

6. Third-Party Processing

• Data Sharing: Stormbreak ensures that any third-party service providers (e.g., for payment processing) also comply with GDPR.
• Data Processing Agreements: Contracts are in place with third-party service providers, ensuring they understand their responsibilities for protecting personal data.

7. Training and Awareness

• Staff Training: Employees and volunteers at stormbreak receive training on data protection practices and GDPR compliance to ensure they understand their responsibilities.

8. Accountability and Governance

• Record Keeping: Stormbreak keeps records of their data processing activities and is able to demonstrate GDPR compliance if required.
• Data Protection Officer (DPO):  Stormbreak has a Data Protection Officer (DPO) to oversee data protection practices.

By adhering to these core principles, stormbreak ensures they meet the GDPR’s requirements and protect the personal data of individuals they work with. 

Do stormbreak work directly with children?

Generally we work directly with trusted adults rather than with children. Our  stormbreak Together training is for parents/carers and families; Stormbreak Surge is for trusted adults in schools and other organisations who regularly work alongside primary aged children. Stormbreak Shine Support Programme are for trusted adults in schools, health and social care. Stormbreak have and will happily attend events directly with children - please get in touch (hello@stormbreak.org.uk) to discuss this further. events where children are in attendance. All stormbreak staff who may work with adults or children hold a valid enhanced DBS certificate. 

What programmes are available?

At stormbreak, we are passionately leading a national, unique, and ambitious programme for primary-aged children. Our work focuses on:

• Large-scale prevention of mental health issues, and
  
  
• Early support when emerging mental health needs are identified.
  
  

We offer three key programmes — Surge (and Surge Light), Shine, and Together — each incorporating ‘stormbreaks’. A stormbreak is a short, psychologically informed, movement-based activity developed and delivered by our experts in education and children’s mental health. Stormbreaks are simple, fun, and easy to understand and deliver. They are also accessible and inclusive, ensuring that every child can take part.

All of our programmes are underpinned by psychosocial and educational theory and align with the NHS iThrive model of care. We work closely with trusted adults to help children recognise, respond to, and regulate their emotions, focusing on five key concepts of mental health: resilience, relationships, self-care, self-worth, and hope & optimism.

Our programmes are designed for children aged 4–11 and their families, supporting emotionally healthy development through movement, connection, and understanding.

Surge

Stormbreak Surge is our sustainable, impactful, whole-school approach to embedding mentally healthy movement every day, for every child. It provides a comprehensive professional development programme that equips primary school staff with the knowledge, confidence, and skills to integrate stormbreak into daily school life — ensuring that all children benefit.

Surge empowers schools to take a gradual, consistent, and inclusive approach to supporting children’s mental health through movement. By building staff capacity and promoting regular practice, schools can create lasting, positive change — proving that small, everyday actions can make a big difference.

We have also adapted a number of existing stormbreak activities to be more neurodivergent-friendly, making them easier to use with children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and ensuring that all pupils can participate meaningfully and successfully.

Surge Light

Stormbreak Surge Light is our self-led sustainable and impactful whole school approach to embedding mentally healthy movement every day for every child, providing a comprehensive self-led professional development programme for primary schools aiming to upskill staff to sustainably implement stormbreak into the life of a school and for the benefit of all primary aged children.

Surge Light is our emotional wellbeing programme which empowers school staff to support children' s mental and physical health. The programme aims to equip stormbreak advocates in schools with resources, activities and confidence to support children to recognise their emotions, respond to their feelings and regulate their emotions as they navigate the challenges of growing up.

The training is mainly aimed at schools who work alongside primary aged children but can be delivered to other organisations who work regularly with primary aged pupils. . Anyone from the organisations can take part in the training as long as they have access to classes or groups of children regardless  of their role.

Shine

Stormbreak Shine is a digital referral tool designed for trusted adults to support young children who may need extra help managing their emotions and behaviours. Through mentally healthy movement, Shine helps children learn to recognise and understand their emotions, respond appropriately to their feelings, and develop practical strategies to self-regulate.

The Shine Pathways guide trusted adults step-by-step through tailored activities and resources that promote emotional awareness, resilience, and confidence.

You can watch our short animation to learn more about how to navigate Shine Pathways, and read the Shine Support Programme flyer for further information about how Shine can be used to enhance emotional wellbeing and support positive change.

Together

Our specialist programme for parents and carers, providing them with knowledge, practical tools, skills and language to support the mental health of their children. Stormbreak Together is our programme for families, parents/carers, trusted adults and organisations that provide support for children in the community. Look at this flyer for further information. 

Stombreak Plus

Become a member of the stormbreak family and access our premium and enhanced content, resources, support and programmes to help children’s mental, physical and emotional health. Stormbreak membership offers organisations even more support material and resources to support the children in their care. Additional materials include our Shine programme and new stormbreaks. Look at this flyer for more information and this video to show you how to navigate your way around stormbreak Plus. 

Stormbreak Cloud

Our freely available digital resource hub supporting primary aged children’s mental health through movement. Anyone can create a free account and gain access to our stormbreak resource hub providing trusted adults that work with, live with, care for and support  children aged 4 to 11 with stormbreak activity ideas, content and materials.

For more information on programmes, please visit ‘Our Programmes’ page on the website. 

How do I invite other users to join my organisation account? 

The admin of your organisation has the ability to invite users to the organisation account. To do this, the admin should click on their name in the top right corner of the account dashboard and select the ‘Invite users’ button. When entering the details of the user you wish to invite, please double-check the name, role, and especially the email address to ensure accuracy. Be aware that the invite may sometimes end up in the recipient's junk or spam folder. For additional guidance, please refer to this helpful video.

What is the difference between groups, teams and children?

Within your dashboard, you have the option to create three different entities: Groups, Teams, and Children.

Groups – These represent larger groups of children for general stormbreak activities such as stormbreaking together or along with a video. The ‘group’ option is best for whole classes of children. ‘Groups’ store basic information such as the number of children, the year group, and the group name (e.g., the class name), but not individual names of children. Note that groups are visible and accessible to all members of your organisation.

Teams – These are intended for smaller, more focused groups of children, typically for interventions or regular small group sessions, where children work with a trusted adult. To create a Team, click on the 'Teams' section, select 'Add a New Team,' and give it a name. Children must first be added under the 'Children' tab before they can be included in a Team. Teams are only visible to the person who created them.

Children – Some children stormbreak individually such as during focused interventions. Individual children will need a ‘Child’ entity to be created. You can add children under the 'Children' tab, allowing you to add as many as needed. To create a child profile, you will need to enter their name, date of birth, and gender. Individual children are only visible to the person who created their profile, but they can also be added to a Team.

When I have set up my organisation account, can I create a mixed age class?

Unfortunately you cannot currently create a mixed-age class but you can assign the class to  ‘Other’ under year groups. 

Can you search for a stormbreak video by its name?

Unfortunately you cannot currently search for a stormbreak video by its name (we know this is frustrating). If you have a stormbreak you enjoy, you can search for it by coach, movement type or mental health concept. Here is a link to the stormbreak videos (remember to log in to ensure your stormbreak is logged). 

Where can I buy a stormbreak t-shirt?

You can buy your very own stormbreak T-shirt via this link or if you are interested in creating your own stormbreak videos please get in touch via hello@stormbreak.org.uk and you might be able to get one for free. 

Shine FAQs

What is included in the stormbreak Shine Support Programme?

The Shine Support Programme is an 8 week programme to support trusted adults in using Shine Digital Pathways with their children. The pathways provide knowledge, skills and practical tools to support emerging mental health needs. For more information on Shine look at this flyer. 

What is a Shine Digital Pathway?

Shine Digital Pathways are a timely tool for trusted adults to use to support children with emerging mental health and emotional well-being needs. Each pathway is designed to support development of our 5 mental health concepts: resilience, relationships, self-care, self-worth, and hope and optimism. 

Each pathway contains specialist curated content that guide conversations between child and trusted adult, intended to promote and sustain positive changes for a target need. Our contributors include Consultant Clinical Psychologists, CAMHS Practitioners, Specialist Occupational Therapists, as well as people with lived experience.

A pathway can be used with a child one to one, in small groups, or sent home for a trusted adult to do with a child. The pathways aim to support children to recognise their emotions, respond to their feelings and self-regulate.

The following pathways are available:

• Be Calm - for when a child worries too much
• Be Strengthened - to support transition and change (especially for Years 5, 6 and 7)
• Be Focussed - for when a child struggles with focus and attention
• Be Understood - for when a child has difficulties in common with Autistic Spectrum
• Plus a pathway for each of our five mental health concepts - Be Resilient, Be Present, Be Hopeful, Be Connected and Be Enough

Do parents/carers need a stormbreak account in order to access the Shine pathways we share with them? 

No, parents do not need an account to access the Shine pathways. The organisation simply needs to share a pathway with the parent or carer, who will then receive an email with the subject "A pathway has been prescribed for your child." By clicking the "View Pathway" button in the email, the parent or carer will be directed straight to the pathway. They will only have access to the specific pathway shared with them and will not be able to see any other part of your dashboard.

Who can see the details of a child when using Shine pathways?

Only the person that creates the profile for a child will be able to see the details entered about them. If a pathway is sent home to a parent, the parent will only have access to the pathway they have been assigned, and CANNOT see the organisation/school’s dashboard.

How do I answer the survey questions when completing a pathway with a group of children?

The survey asks you questions as if you are answering about an individual. So when using a pathway with a group, simply pick one child from the group and answer the questions for them. Make sure to answer all surveys consistently about your chosen child.

How can I monitor a child’s progress when using the Shine pathways?

On the child’s dashboard, click on the pathway tab, then on the right there will be a section that says ‘How’s it going?’. It will show progress in 3 sections, Emotions, Behaviours and Skills. Based on the end of stage surveys, the indicators will change to show the child’s progression (shown in the image below). Emotions refers to if the child is enjoying engaging with the pathway. Behaviours refers to the child’s engagement with the pathway content. Skills refers to how the child is progressing with their distress tolerance and self-regulating their emotions.

Can I access Shine Pathways without completing training?

Yes, you can use the pathways without training. Before assigning a pathway and to understand the needs that the pathway supports, read the resources from the Pathway Assignment page.

Further resources that will support you using the pathway with a child, are embedded in the Trusted Adult Toolkit. We recommend taking time to review the videos and documents before attempting each stage of the pathway.  

How do I re-open Pathways that have been shared with me? 

If you return to the email that your child’s school sent to you, you can click on the ‘View pathway’ button, and you will be taken directly to the pathway.

Can a child access more than one Shine pathway concurrently?

A child cannot have more than one pathway assigned to their dashboard. However, if they are part of a small group using Shine pathways, you are able to have 1 assigned to the child and 1 assigned to the group they are in. 

Can I go backwards in a pathway? 

Unfortunately no, once you have clicked complete at the end of each stage you are not able to go back. From a therapeutic perspective, it’s important that children move forward through the pathway rather than going back. Each stage in the Shine Pathway is carefully designed to build on the learning and emotional development from the previous one. Revisiting completed stages can sometimes disrupt progress, confuse emotional messages, or undermine a child’s growing sense of achievement and confidence.

By continuing forward, trusted adults help children to consolidate their learning, develop self-regulation skills, and gain a sense of mastery and momentum. If you need to revisit ideas or strategies from earlier stages, the Trusted Adult Toolkit (found on the right-hand side of the main pathway page) includes helpful reminders, guidance, and supporting information — without needing to move backwards in the pathway.

How can I view the pathways before completing them with a child? 

In order to view a pathway before completing it with a child, we suggest you create a ‘test child’ so you can look through the pathway and prepare prior to completing it with a child. When you start the survey, remember to tick ‘I do NOT want anonymous survey information to be shared with the researchers’.

Surge/Surge Light FAQs

What is included in the stormbreak Surge/Surge Light Programmes?

The Surge Programme is a 12 week programme supporting school advocates to implement a sustainable whole school approach towards embedding mentally healthy movement.

The Surge Light is a self-led online digital learning programme for primary schools giving staff strategies, skills and delivery content to support children’s mental health through movement.

The differences as to what are included are outlined in the table below: