Last year we were lucky enough to gain funding to work closely with 3 primary schools in Oxford, supporting them to embed our whole school approach to an emotionally healthy school learning community. We are just beginning our 2nd year of this work with these 3 schools.
The first year involved listening and conversations with the senior leadership teams, practical and interactive staff training courses for all the adults in school, and training and supervision for staff with appropriate roles to deliver our Parenting Programmes in their school. Evaluation has focused on building adult capabilities, in staff and in parents/carers.
In Year 2 we are continuing with practical sessions for staff to embed this approach, review meetings with the senior leadership teams, supervision and further training for the Parent Group Leaders, and information sessions for school governors. Evaluation will continue to focus on building adult capabilities, as well as hearing from the pupils through focus groups.
We have been lucky this year to obtain funding for working with 2 more local schools in a similar way. Training courses at these schools are underway and we are very much looking forward to more of this longer-term partnership work.
Our whole school approach addresses all of the recommendations in the EEF’s Improving social and emotional learning in primary schools (Sept 2019). In particular, our practical and interactive workshops allow the adults around children and young people to practise daily habits of relating and communicating which can make the most of all of the opportunities to support and develop the emotional skills and competencies of those around them.