Children's Mental Health Week: Stars release charity single
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Ruti and Yolanda are on the track
Nothing is more important than looking after your mental health, especially during these difficult times. That's why Young Voices has teamed up with Billy Ocean, Ruti Olajugbagbe and YolanDa Brown for their charity cover of 'Lovely Day'.
Young Voices is an educational programme that has staged the largest children's choirs' concerts in the world.
The cover of Bill Withers' song Lovely Day aims to raise as much money as possible for children's mental health charity Place2Be.
Cbeebies' YolanDa Brown, who plays the saxophone in the new charity single, said: "Nothing moves me more than seeing joy oozing out of children through the gift and power of music.
"I'm honoured to be performing on this single and cannot wait to kick off Young Voices' Biggest Sing with thousands of children across the country."
It's important to look after your own mental wellbeing make sure you scroll to the bottom for top tips from psychologist Laverne Antrobus
Billy Ocean is keen to help Young Voices achieve its goal, saying: "I'm so happy to be able to join with Young Voices to help make a difference and to raise funds for children's mental health with this wonderful and hopeful song".
The Voice UK 2018 winner Ruti Olajugbagbe originally took part in Young Voices when she was a child!
Watch: YolanDa and Ruti talk about their involvement in Young Voices' Lovely Day cover
Newsround caught up with YolanDa and Ruti for their thoughts and feelings behind the track.
YolanDa said: "it means so much to me to be a part of children's mental health week, it's a cause that needs more awareness, especially now - we need to support each other and express our feelings and understanding the things that are going on right now".
Ruti told Newsround: "I'm happy to have been a part of such a joyful project and in aid of Place2Be, which is a really important charity that is making mental health support more accessible in schools."
What can you do if lockdown is getting you down?
Children's Mental Health week was first launched in 2015 by Place2Be, with the aim of shining a spotlight on the importance of young people's mental wellbeing.
According NHS data, the number of children who may be experiencing a mental health disorder has increased over the past three years, from around 1 in 9 children having probable mental health issue in 2017, to 1 in 6 in July 2020.
Psychologist Laverne Antrobus has some tips for looking after yourself
Looking after your mental health
It's important to look after your mental health, so here are some tips from Psychologist Laverne Antrobus on how to look after yourself during lockdown.
Laverne reassures us that this isn't our first lockdown, and that we should use the skills and tips we have learnt throughout the past lockdown to help us when we are feeling worried.
Don't bottle up your feelings - talk to your parents or a trusted adult about how you are feeling. This could also be your teacher, close family member or even just a friend! It's important that you let others know how you are feeling.
Stay connected to friends and family by finding the time to do things that you enjoy with them. You can talk to your friends on the phone, video call or even write them a letter!
Get your information from trusted sources - there is a lot of misinformation out there and hearing scary stories can cause you to panic. Laverne's tip is to ask your parents or teachers and listen to doctors.
- Published25 June 2018
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