The A-Z of Student Wellbeing

The A-Z of Student Wellbeing is a handbook for school leaders, organised around the 26 letters of the English alphabet.

Jamie O'Dowd is Assistant Head at St Christopher's School in Bahrain with responsibility for wellbeing, behaviour and pastoral care. His recent Masters in Educational Leadership and Management research examined why wellbeing programmes can often fail in schools, a topic he has presented and spoken on at conferences around the Middle East in the last two years.


Born in Nottingham, he spent the early part of his career acting in local films and theatre before working professionally as an actor in London. It was while working on a Theatre in Education production, delivering drama workshops in schools and youth centres in the East End of London, that he first developed a love for teaching. After re-training as an English teacher, Jamie specialised in the pastoral care of children and young people, working as a Head of Year in schools in Nottingham and Bahrain before becoming Assistant Head with oversight of whole school wellbeing and pastoral systems.