OUR MODEL
Building the system around the student.
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Twogere works with schools to make mental health support part of everyday school life. ​We strengthen the people, practices, systems and pathways around young people so schools can prevent problems where possible, recognise concerns early, respond appropriately and connect students to the right support when more help is needed.
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Our approach is practical, locally grounded and designed to strengthen what schools already have — not create parallel services.
WHY SCHOOLS?
Schools are one of the most important places to reach young people early.
Teachers and school staff are often among the first to notice when something changes: a student withdrawing, struggling to concentrate, becoming distressed or behaving differently. But noticing a concern is only the beginning.
Schools also need the skills, clear roles, supportive environments, safeguarding arrangements and referral pathways to respond appropriately. ​Twogere strengthens schools as an entry point to mental health support, not as a replacement for professional care, but as part of a connected support system around the student.
Three building blocks of a stronger school system
Our model brings together three connected functions. Together, they help schools build a more reliable system of support around students.
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Build the skills and confidence of teachers and school communities to support young people's mental health.
HOW WE HELP SCHOOLS BUILD THE SYSTEM
Schools do not all start from the
same place.
We work with each school to understand what is already in place, identify what needs strengthening and progressively build the system. ​Our 24-month Schools That Care programme follows a deliberate pathway:
The phases are sequential in emphasis, but not isolated. What is established in one phase continues to be used and strengthened as the school moves forward. The goal is not to complete activities. The goal is to change how the school works.
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WHAT CHANGES IN A SCHOOL?
A trained teacher may recognise that a student is struggling. A strengthened school knows what happens next.
There is a clear way to respond: who takes responsibility, what they should do, when others need to be involved, how the student is safeguarded, where to seek further support and how to follow up.
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Students also know where they can seek help, what support they can expect and when information may need to be shared to keep them safe.
​The difference is not simply having more people with mental health knowledge. It is having a school system that can recognise concerns, respond appropriately and connect students to the support they need.
HOW WE WORK WITH SCHOOLS?
We believe lasting change has to be led from within the school.
When a school partners with Twogere, we establish a core school team to lead implementation. Twogere provides the training, tools, technical assistance and coaching needed to help the team lead the work across the school. The school applies the approach in its own context. Twogere supports implementation, helps the school review progress and strengthens areas where gaps remain.
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Over time, responsibility shifts from Twogere to the school.
FACILITATE → BUILD → COACH → TRANSFER → SUSTAIN
The question guiding our support:
What does the school need to be able to do this itself?
OUR MODEL IS DIFFERENT.
We build on what schools already have.
We strengthen existing school structures wherever possible rather than creating parallel services or unnecessary layers.
We keep professional care connected.
Teachers and school personnel provide appropriate first-line support within their roles. They are not expected to diagnose or replace mental health professionals. When additional support is needed, students are connected to appropriate services and other sources of support.
We involve students.
Students are not only recipients of support. Their experiences help schools understand what is working, what needs to change and how support can become more accessible and relevant.
We build ownership from the beginning.
Twogere provides training, technical assistance and coaching. School teams lead implementation, and responsibility progressively moves into the school's own systems and routines.
BUILDING FOR LONG TERM
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Twogere's role is not to become the mental health service inside every school.
Our role is to help schools build the capacity, structures, practices and connections they need to support young people better. We are working towards a model that schools, government, communities and partners can strengthen, adopt and scale across Uganda.
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That is what it means to build a school-based mental health system.
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