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Teachers are looking after their wellbeing by attending virtual yoga lessons hosted by a colleague.

Sarah Power, enrichment lead at Forest Hall School, is offering the online wellbeing sessions after qualifying as a yoga instructor.

She said: “I had always intended running staff yoga sessions at school to look after our wellbeing. I felt being able to access it free of charge in school would be a great idea.

“Now, with the school closed to the majority and colleagues working at home, I decided to run the sessions online on Microsoft Teams.”

The first 50-minute class saw seven members of staff from Forest Hall join together, along with partners, children – and pets.

They enjoyed breathing exercises, yoga poses and Tibetan Buddhist singing bowls.

Jonathan Moran, careers lead, said: “I like to work out and stretch regularly, but when there is someone instructing you it allows you to surrender your thoughts and tune out and just breathe and listen to the instructions.”

Miss Power, who rejoined the school in March after a year travelling, said: “Everybody got to have a bit of a chat at the start. We all agreed it was lovely to be able to see each other again. I have not seen some of my colleagues since last summer; it was so nice to see them again.

“You can be really content on your own, but when you do something like this you realise it is really nice to chat and see smiling faces. We were able to do something together, despite being in different places.

“Normally, as teachers, we are running around a classroom, out on duty, covering lunchbreaks; we are very mobile people. Working from home, we are not running after the children, so it is important we do something to keep moving.

“I am catering to complete beginners at a slow pace to show it is accessible for everyone. It is a myth that you have to have certain clothes and be flexible.

“It is just a great way to take care of your own wellbeing. Taking time to sit and breathe is a good way to start the day.

“I love teaching yoga and am looking forward to getting back to school to incorporate this into our routine and to offer it to our students. I want people to use it as a way of forgetting about everything and relaxing; that’s what I’m hoping for.”

Linda McCormack, food technology teacher, said: “It was lovely to connect with other Forest Hall teachers for some yoga. It really gave a positive start to my day.”