With an ambitious project impacting 9,000 children across Croydon, the White Label Team was ready to answer the call.

The project was initiated by Croydon’s Education Partnership (CEP) as part of the Five Ways to Wellbeing educational initiative, which began with year 6 students from Rockmount Primary School creating five characters that would ultimately form the visual backbone of the whole concept. The five characters were Connie Connect, the communicator; Active Akhim, the dynamic one in a wheelchair; Noticing Nina, the detail-oriented artist; Lenny the Learner, the curious and positive one and Giving Gilbert, the gift giver.

The creative team at White Label took the student’s drawings, digitised them and then created the ‘Wellbeing Way’ a fictitious street in the borough of Croydon, from which the characters lived, played and shared stories.

Andrew Keen, White Label’s creative director said: “I went back to the school to present the final digitised characters alongside the new world we had created for them on the 24 March. It was very rewarding to see the children’s reactions. Their faces lit up with pride when they saw their characters come to life.

“This project was unlike any other White Label project we have taken on but that’s what I liked about it. We were really proud to be a part of it. ”

The five characters were developed into an integrated 3-in-1 card game accompanied by a storybook explaining the five ways of wellbeing – connect, be active, take notice, keep learning, and give, as well as a digital guide for parents to assist in learning facilitation through activities that promote mental wellbeing and mindfulness.

The packs, which included all these parts, are being distributed to 9,000 children across the borough through schools, wellbeing centres, charities and libraries.

Jason Perry, Executive Mayor of Croydon said of the project: “I would like to thank the pupils and teachers at Rockmount Primary School for helping us to create this excellent storybook and song, which will benefit all children in our borough.

“Ensuring that children and young people in Croydon have the chance to thrive, learn and fulfil their potential is one of my key commitments and I am pleased that these tools will help them to develop important skills to look after their physical and mental health. This storybook is for everyone to use and to apply what is best for their family or school environment.”

The White Label Creative and CEP teams also created songs, makaton videos and an audiobook to support the storybook.

Find out more about the initiative here: https://wellbeingway.co.uk/