Soláthar Cothaithe – ag tabhairt faoi fhadhbanna Ceangail i measc Páistí Óga .

1. SolátharCothaithe – agtabhairtfaoifhadhbannaCeangailimeascPáistíÓga.

2. Nurture Provision - Addressing Attachment Difficulties in Young Children

3. Tráthnónamaithdaoibh a dhaoineuaisle. • Tá an Roinnagamharcanois, le tríblianaanuasarchothúsóisialta a sholátharsnabunscoileannas'againn. • Tááthasorm a bheithanseoinniu le tuilleadheolais a thabhairtdaoibhfaointionscadalseoagusfaoinatorthaí a bheas leis.

4. Nurture Groups and the Principles of Nurturing Current Nurture Pilot The Practicalities of the Nurture Unit What difference does it make? Evaluation and Next Steps

5. Nurture Groupsand the Principles of Nurturing Judith McConaghy Educational Psychologist

6. Who developed Nurture Groups? • Marjorie Boxall, an Educational Psychologist set up the first Nurture Groups in London,1969 • Set up in response to the prevalence of children with SEBD entering mainstream school • Pupils were identified as having delayed social and emotional development in comparison to age related peers • Children responded positively to the Nurture Group placement – better social & emotional skills & better attainment

7. When were they developed? • Nurture groups have been established over last 40 years • Their importance has only recently been recognised • Type of education suitable in this time of rapid social change

8. What is a Nurture Group? • Class of 8-10 children (traditionally Primary 1), teacher and classroom assistant who work as a team • Selected for NG placement based on scores on the Boxall Profile • Children form part of the mainstream class at beginning and end of the day • Children spend the rest of the day in the Nurture Group classroom - domestic features - dining table and chairs, sofa and easy chairs, cooking and washing-up areas

11. What does a Nurture Group day look like? • welcome • news time • breakfast • curriculum subjects • social and emotional learning, thinking, planning and problem solving • How things are done is as important as what is done

12. The basis of Nurture Groups • The focus of the intervention is to improve children’s social and emotional development, rather than focus on behaviour reduction programmes – see Boxall Profile & Beyond the Boxall • Children will be more successful if they are exposed to a developmentally appropriate curriculum • Adult’s model and teach social/emotional skills • Builds on sound research base of Attachment Theory (Bowlby, 1969) and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow, 1943)

13. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Self- fulfilment and actualisation Self-esteem prestige, feeling of accomplishment Love and Friendship Needs – to give and receive love, to belong Safety Needs – safe from threats, treated fairly, trusted and to trust Physical Needs – air, food, water, shelter, medical care, rest and recreation

14. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs • The primary needs of an individual are physical - search for food and shelter • Each need must be met before attending to the next level • Top 2 levels can only be attended to if the lower 3 have already been met • The nurture group caters specifically for pupils who have difficulty in achieving a sense of security and safety (Cooper, 2001)

15. Attachment Theory • The main features were developed and presented over several decades beginning in the 1950’s by the British Child Psychiatrist, John Bowlby (Child Care and the Growth of Love 1953) • It provides a model of how a child’s early social experiences form the building blocks of emotional understanding

16. How secure attachment develops need trust security attachment high arousal relaxation satisfy need

17. Development of insecure attachments need Poor learning about social relationships trust security attachment high arousal/increased attachment behaviour unmet need

18. Brain Development In the developing child the right brain (sensory/motor/emotions)develops before the left (reasoning/logic) If great anxiety is experienced in early childhood the neural pathways of emotion develop very strongly therefore certain triggers will always produce extreme emotional responses without reasoning

19. Organisation of attachment patterns 35% 65% SECURE INSECURE ORGANISED DISORGANISED 5% AVOIDANT AMBIVALENT 15% 15%

20. Response to stress/ anxiety… Fight Flight Do nothing

21. How does this translate to the classroom?

22. CLASSROOM INTERACTIONS teacher pupil task (Geddes 2006, p4)

23. teacher task pupil Insecure Ambivalent Attachment Pattern

24. teacher task pupil Insecure Avoidant Attachment Pattern

25. “Caregivers, teachers, and social workers should remember that the detail of what they do with children counts. The rituals, the smiles, the interest in little things, the daily routine, the talents they nurture, the interests they stimulate, the hobbies they encourage, the friendships they support… make a difference. All of these little things may foster in a child the vital senses of belonging, of mattering, of counting. All of these little details may prove decisive turning points in a young person’s developmental pathway.” Gilligan (2000)

26. Recommended Reading • All About Nurture Groups M Bennathan & Jim Rose • Nurture Groups in Schools, Principles and Practice Marjorie Boxall • Effective Intervention in Primary Schools Boxall & Bennathan • Attachment in the Classroom Heather Geddes • Teaching the Unteachable Marie Delaney • Inside I’m Hurting Louise Michelle Bomber • Nurturing Attachments Kim Golding • Thinking Psychologically About Children Kim Golding et al Who Are Looked After and Adopted • Why Love Matters Sue Gerhardt • What About Me? Louise Michelle Bomber

27. References • Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment. Attachment and loss: Vol. 1. Loss. New York: Basic Books. • Cooper, P., Arnold, R., & Boyd, E. (2001) The effectiveness of nurture groups: Preliminary research findings. British Journal of Special Education, 28 (4), 160-166 • Geddes, H. (2006) Attachment in the Classroom • Gilligan, R. (2000) Adversity, resilience and young people: the protective value of positive school and spare time experiences, Children and Society, 14 (1), 37-47 • Maslow, A. H. (1943). A Theory of Human Motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-96.

28. Origins of Nurture in NI • Concept originated of London in 1969  • UK Nurture Group Network established in 1999 • Several local schools became aware of research and became interested in establishing a Unit • Tullycarnet, Belfast • Holy Family,Derry • Ballysally, Coleraine • DSD agreed to fund several Nurture Units as part of Neighbourhood Renewal Programme • 2012 – Established the NI Nurture Group Network

29. Current Nurture Pilot Project • Early 2012 - Delivering Social Change Fund established by Executive to respond flexibly to urgent social need • October 2012 OFMDFM announced 6 DSC Signature Projects including the Nurture Project • 20 new nurture units operational by September 2013 • Funded for 2 year period (ending June 2015) • DSD to lead - supported by DE

30. Current Nurture Pilot Project • Needed to get Units operational very quickly (Sept 2013) • Used objective criteria to identify schools • Above the average for free school means entitlement; • Below the average attendance rate; • Below the average results for end of Key Stage 1 (both English and mathematics); • Below the average results for end of Key Stage 2 (both English and mathematics); and • Above the average for pupils with statements of special educational needs. • 44 schools identified

31. Current Nurture Pilot Project • April 2013, 20 schools shortlisted • Principals briefed on Nurture and invited to commit to participation • Nurture Unit staff ( 1 x Teacher, 1 x CA) identified • Accredited training organised • Room adaptations arranged • NU equipment identified and ordered • Whole school training arranged • Arrangements for ELB support put in place

32. Current Nurture Pilot Project • September 2013, NU staff begin assessing pupils • Halloween 2013,most NUs start daily operations • Need for wider evaluation of Nurture agreed • DE and DSD agree to fund 10 established units in parallel to DSC project to extend the dataset • Use the evaluation to provide evidence to inform long-term decisions • Summer 2015, DFP change Fund support secured to extend support for all 30 units up to March 2016

33. Practical Delivery of Nurture

34. What does a Nurture Unit Look Like? Home Kitchen WCs Work Play

41. What does a Typical Day Involve? • Children will attend their normal class for registration • They will be collected by the nurture room staff and taken to the Nurture room • They will participate in play, personal development and curriculum learning activities • They will eat together, taking turns to prepare the food, serve and tidy up afterwards • Be returned to their normal class at the end of the day.

42. Behind the Scenes • Staff will be monitoring the progress of each child using the Boxall Profile, Goodmans SDQ etc • Working to build relationships with each child’s parents • Working with each mainstream class teacher to ensure progress and coping techniques are understood and positively reinforced within the mainstream class • Working with the whole school to promote understanding of the Nurture Room and develop a whole-school nurturing ethos.

43. Boxall Profile • Pupil profiling tool completed by the NU staff which examines: • Section I: Developmental strands • This measures progress through the different aspects of development in the child’s pre-school years. • Child's organisation of their learning experiences • Child’s internalisation of controls. • Section II: The diagnostic profile • This examines behaviours that inhibit or interfere with the child's satisfactory involvement in school. • Self-limiting features, • undeveloped behaviour • unsupported development.

44. Boxall Profile

45. Behind the Scenes (2) • Principal will be running a Nurturing Steering Group to support the work of the Unit • NU staff will be receiving support and advice from EA nurture support and behavioural specialists • NU staff will be participating in EA-led peer support networks to build on their skills and share best-practice • NU staff will become in-house “nurture champions” advising other teachers on methods they can use to build nurture principles into their daily teaching.

46. Why bother? What difference does it make?Westwinds Nurture Room Video

47. Evaluation and Next Steps

48. Independent Evaluation • QUB School of Education engaged to evaluate the effectiveness of all 30 Units • 20 DSC Nurture Units • 10 Established Nurture Units • 14 Control Schools • Demonstrate whether nurture is simply an alternative to support mechanisms OR an improvement • Quantify the benefits • Quantify the costs involved • Identify any scope for longer term savings • Any conclusions needed to be evidence based

49. Quantitative Outcomes – Interim Data(based on Boxall profiles) A Size of Change >0.001 is statistically significant for all outcomes A Size of Change >0.2 represents a large change in any outcome

50. Other Outcomes • Approx 550 children have attended the Nurture Room • Almost all children have shown an improvement in their social and emotional development • Most re-integrated successfully into their mainstream class after 3-4 terms in the Nurture Room • The pupils are reporting an increased enjoyment of school