Suppor&ng the Mental Health of Looked- A7er Children Across the Primary- Secondary Transi&on

Transcription

1 Suppor&ng the Mental Health of Looked- A7er Children Across the Primary- Secondary Transi&on Helen Drew, & Robin Banerjee (University of Sussex), Mary John (University of Surrey) and Nikki Luke & Judy Sebba (Rees Centre, University of Oxford) h#p:// secondary- transi:on h#p://reescentre.educa:on.ox.ac.uk/research/mental- health/suppor:ng- mental- health- of- looked- a=er- children- around- primary- secondary- transi:on/

2 Overview Why is transi&on such a cri&cal &me for looked- a7er children? Current provision by Virtual Schools for looked- a7er children: How do they support educa:on, wellbeing and mental health? How do they support ordinary care? Longitudinal study in schools How can we support early interven:on in a school seeng?

3 Why focus on the transi&on period? year olds are the largest age group of looked- a=er children (37%) Transi:on is a challenging :me for all children, but par:cularly many looked- a=er children. Lower academic a#ainment Difficul:es with social skills and forming friendships Challenging behaviour Experiences with bullying Previous instability through placement changes The early secondary school years are the period of highest risk for mental health problems.

4 Why focus on the transi&on period? There is a large dip in a#ainment between KS2 and KS4 for looked- a=er children. At KS4 only 8% (32%) LAC with SEN and 28% (80%) without achieve benchmark 5 A*- C GCSEs. In 2014 the most common type of SEN for looked a=er children was behavioural, emo:onal and social difficul:es, which accounted for 49% of looked a=er children at School Ac:on Plus as their primary special need and just under 39% of pupils with a statement of SEN.

5 Working with Virtual Schools The role of the Virtual School is to champion the Educa:on of LAC and ensure the educa:onal a#ainment, a#endance and educa:onal stability of the children they look a=er is tracked and monitored as if the children a1ended a single school. The Children and Families Act (2014) made the role of the Virtual School Head Teacher statutory. The Virtual School Head manages the Pupil Premium Plus budget.

6 Virtual School Survey Online survey sent to all Virtual School Heads across the country. Twenty nine completed surveys analysed 1 in 5 response rate. Virtual Schools were asked what services or training were provided to support LAC, foster carers and schools par:cularly across the transi:on years. They were asked to iden:fy whether these services or training supported: Educa:onal A#ainment; Transi:on; Behaviour; Mental Health; Social and Emo:onal Understanding; A#achment; Peer Rela:onships; Family Rela:onships; Placement Stability.

7 Virtual School Survey Four key themes emerged from the responses Enhanced Learning Opportuni:es Specific support for transi:on Wellbeing and Rela:onships Raising Awareness

8 Virtual School Survey Specific support for transi&on Enhanced transi:on support: - transi:on PEPs; - visits to schools with LAC and carers; - transi:on workshops; - transi:on mentoring support; - priori:sed EP or CAMHS assessments; - transi:on holiday camps to build confidence and social skills Raising awareness Foster carers forums and training; conferences for foster carers/ school staff; DT training and networks; drop- ins for school staff; bespoke training for schools / teachers; Governor training

9 Virtual School Survey Well- being and rela&onships Whole school / mul: agency training or development days par:cularly focussed on building awareness of a#achment and trauma Nurture/small group work to support peer rela:onships and behaviour Mentoring and one- to- one caseworker support Mental health support: - Zippy s friends a posi:ve mental health a=er school provision; - using PP+ to fund interven:ons such as drama therapy, counselling services etc Virtual Schools employed at least a part :me EP; 2 employed a part :me CAMHS/ Primary MH worker. A few VS were based within mul:- agency teams that included CAMHS and EPs that meant they could get rapid assessments and response for LAC.

10 Virtual School Survey Personalised individual or direct support

11 Virtual School Survey Extension of mental health and educa&onal psychology provision

12 Virtual School Survey Staffing, &me and funding Restructuring Evidence base Sudden changes to the care plan

13 Discussion Ques&ons From a foster carers perspec&ve: What support is most effec&ve especially around transi&ons? What are the barriers to offering effec&ve support with educa&on and wellbeing to the child you look a7er and what would help?

14 Longitudinal Study in Schools Research Ques&ons What are the key factors that predict difficul&es with looked- a7er children s mental health around the transi&on from primary to secondary school? Are there key factors, such as posi&ve peer rela&onships or elements of social understanding, that protect looked- a7er children from developing or worsening mental health difficul&es in this period? Aim To develop a screening tool that schools can use to offer early support to those LAC who may be at most risk of later mental health problems

15 Longitudinal Study in Schools We aim to develop an understanding of the links between peer rela:onships, social and emo:onal understanding, empathy, pro- social behaviour, self- percep:ons (including self- efficacy and self- esteem) and mood, including sub- clinical mental health. We are also measuring social and community engagement, as well as percep:ons of school and support from key adults. LAC and matched classmates are comple:ng an online ques:onnaire; teachers are comple:ng the SDQ and the Mulberry Bush Emo:onal and Social Development Scale; Virtual Schools will provide informa:on on length of :me in care, age at entry into care, number of placements.

16 Discussion Ques&ons How can we develop more effec&ve mental health support for looked- a7er children in school se[ngs? How can schools and carers work be\er together to intervene early to support the mental health of looked- a7er children?

17 References (1) Anthonysamy, A., & Zimmer- Gembeck, M. J. (2007). Peer status and behaviors of maltreated children and their classmates in the early years of school. Child Abuse & Neglect, 31(9), Berridge, D., Henry, L., Jackson, S. and Turney, D. (2009) Looked A=er and Learning: An Evalua:on of the Virtual School Head for Looked A=er Children Local Authority Pilots, London, DfE. Retrieved from: h#p://educa:on.gov.uk/publica:ons/standard/publica:ondetail/page1/dcsf- RR144 Brewin, M., & Statham, J. (2011). Suppor:ng the transi:on from primary school to secondary school for children who are Looked A=er. Educa=onal Psychology in Prac=ce, 27(4), Daly, F., & Gilligan, R. (2005). Lives in foster care the educa:onal and social support experiences of young people aged years in long- term foster care. Dublin: Children s Research Centre, Trinity College. Department for Educa:on (2014). Children looked a=er in England (including adop:on and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2014: SFR36/2014. London: Department for Educa:on. Retrieved from: h#p:// SFR36_2014_Text.pdf Evangelou, M., Taggart, B., Sylva, K., Melhuish, E., Sammons, P., & Siraj- Blatchford, I. (2008). What makes a successful transi=on from primary to secondary school? Findings from the effec=ve pre- school, primary and secondary educa=on 3-14 (EPPSE) project (Research Report DCSF- RR019). NoEngham: DCSF. Ford, T., Goodman, R., & Meltzer, H. (2003). The Bri:sh Child and Adolescent Mental Health Survey 1999: The prevalence of DSM- IV disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 42(10),

18 References (2) Kessler, R.C., Angermeyer, M., Anthony, J.C., De Graaf, R., Demy#enaere, K., Gasquet, I. (2007). Life:me prevalence and age- of- onset distribu:ons of mental disorders in the World Health Organiza:on s World Mental Health Survey Ini:a:ve. World Psychiatry, 6(3), Luke, N. (2012). Associa=ons between Paren=ng and Children s Socio- emo=onal Well- being: The Role of Empathy and Social Understanding. DPhil Thesis. University of Sussex: UK Luke, N., & Banerjee, R. (2011). Maltreated Children s Social Understanding and Empathy: A Preliminary Explora:on of Foster Carers Perspec:ves. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 21(2), Luke, N., & Banerjee, R. (2013). Differen:ated associa:ons between childhood maltreatment experiences and social understanding: A meta- analysis and systema:c review. Developmental Review, 33(1), The Impact of Virtual Schools on the educa=onal progress of looked- azer children (120165), Ofsted, Zeedyk, M.S., Gallacher, J., Henderson, M. Hope, G., Husband, B & Lindsay, K. (2003) Nego:a:ng the transi:on from Primary to Secondary school: Percep:ons of Pupils, Parents and Teachers School Psychology Interna=onal, Vol 24 (1),