30th July is the International Day of Friendship, an annual opportunity to recognise the importance of our friends! Relationships and feeling connected to other people are one of the most important ways to positive mental health and emotional wellbeing. One of the best ways to stay connected to people is through our friends, so make sure to let your friends know you care today.
Gill Sutherland, Head of the Children’s Health and Wellbeing Service, said: “Good friends are always there for us and pick us up when we are down. Spending time with them and laughing together feels good and does good for our mental wellbeing. It is important not only to reach out to our old friends but also to new people as well. That way, we make new friends throughout our lives.”
At Children’s Health Scotland, we recognise the friends are so important that we dedicated a whole day in our upcoming Scottish Children’s Health Week to being friendly. #BeFriendly Friday has three fabulous ideas to help you reconnect and spend time with friends, as well as a fun craft activity that anyone can do. You can access the 2022 Scottish Children’s Health Week activity book here, or you view a text only version here. You can have fun doing these friendly activities today to celebrate International Day of Friendship, or you can take part in the fun during the Scottish Children’s Health Week on 5 – 11 September 2022. Best of all though, you can do both!
We hope you’ll join us during Scottish Children’s Health Week! 😊
