CSS South Quadrant

1. CSS South Quadrant Sharon Wilson – Headteacher Complex PRU made up of three centres, off site team, hospital schoolroom, crèche for babies of teenage mums All ages taught 5-16 All students out of school Medical, psychological, social, behaviour Primary Unit – BESD – mostly statemented Pathways project – 20 KS4 students with BESD statements. At present approx 200 children with 50 with statements Rises to 300 by February 110 staff (teachers, TAs, engagement mentors, HSLWs, admin, caretakers and cleaners)

2. Working with NCB • When we agreed to work with the NCB on this project I was Head of a PRU which had one Centre – 65-80 students, 40 staff. • We started to work with the NCB in early 2010 on a project funded by the DCSF, “Building capacity to meet the mental health needs of young people in Pupil Referral Units” After meeting with Jacqui Newvell (NCB) and Liz Brown (consultant) we took part in a “matching needs and services audit” We had the luxury of spending two days finding out what the needs of our young people really were. We looked at needs such as • Living situation • Family and social relationships • Social and antisocial behaviour • Physical and psychological health • Education and employment

3. AUDIT • We discovered that our young people had a very diverse set of mental health needs, caused by: • Poor adult/child relationships • Impact of loss or trauma • Poor care at home • Inconsistent boundaries at home • Domestic violence • Inability to make friends • Impact of physical illness • Parental drug /drink misuse or mental health problems

4. AUDIT Examples of the needs of the Young People • Year 10 student whose mother has rejected her. She self harms, is anorexic and has been a psychiatric in-patient • Year 11 student whose relationship with his mother has broken down. His gang seems to have become his family. He is violent and involved in crime. • Year 5 child who is unable to interact with other children. His clothes are dirty, he does not know how to play and sometimes chooses not tospeak.

5. AUDIT Interesting outcomes • 68% significant impairment threshold • 51% low self esteem • 68% mental health problems • 59% single parent households • 30% serious problems with family relationships • 17% suffering loss and trauma • 20% parents misusing drugs/alcohol • Out of 63 children 62 were thought to have needs that were not met or only partially met

6. What next? Following the publication of the audit, (early 2011) we worked with staff to identify how we could better meet the needs of the young people, and what training we might need to do so. The Caspari Foundation was identified by NCB to deliver the training, and Jacqui, Michael Reeves from Caspari and I worked on a programme. We decided to concentrate on training that helped staff to understand where children were coming from, and how their early experiences impacted on their behaviour and mental health.

7. Caspari Training • Four days – whole staff training including support staff + our tier two mental health workers • Three days – small group more intensive work • We worked with a number of highly skilled trainers • Marie Delaney led the main days • Jenny Dover led the small group work • Michael Reeves did all the organisation • At the end of each main day we held a discussion group with me, my deputies and Marie. These were fun and often challenging, and the next training day was adjusted according to our discussion.

8. Caspari Training Main days • Day 1 - teaching the unteachable – what lies behind pupils’ behaviour • Day 2 – attachment, neuroscience and the classroom • Day 3 – unconscious processes and systemic ideas • Day 4 – Using therapeutic approaches Small Group days • Day 1 – families and attachment • Day 2 - thinking about unconscious processes in families • Day 3 – therapeutic approaches and families

9. Caspari training – the impact The training reinforced, challenged and expanded our understanding and beliefs.

10. The importance of managing our own state… • As teachers we manage relationships which are often full of unmanaged emotion. • We need to reflect consciously on our own emotional (and physical) states. • Our emotional state both affects and is affected by our students. • Our own feelings are valid and suppressing them blocks thinking

11. The Caspari Training Challenged our beliefs by asking us to consider therapeutic thinking to reflect on behaviour looking at: • Unconscious Defence Mechanisms • Containment • Attachment Theory • Therapeutic Stories and Tasks

12. Unconscious Defence Mechanisms Projection – Students projecting their feelings on us or us projecting our feelings on the students. What we are doing now • considering our feelings and how they are affecting our students and vice versa. • building opportunities for us and students to discuss feelings and thoughts in lessons and in the curriculum.

13. Unconscious Defence Mechanisms Displacement – the displacement of feelings for one person onto another. What we are doing now • reminding ourselves that these feelings might not be meant for us. • using the emotion to investigate its origin and help the student to come to a realisation.

14. Unconscious Defence Mechanisms Transference – when old feelings are triggered by events in the present. What we are doing now • reminding ourselves that transference can be triggered by all kinds of things such as a look or even a tone of voice. • reminding ourselves that students may trigger in us negative transferred emotions. • look at ways to break the pattern of transference.

15. Attachment Theory When a person has not developed a relationship with at least one primary care giver, social and emotional development may not occur normally What we are doing now • Creating opportunities to build trust. • Modelling positive interactions and responses. • Actively teaching students how to positively manage their emotions and feelings.

16. Therapeutic Stories and Tasks We were shown how stories, pictures and tasks could be used to externalise some of the anxiety, rage and fear that can block learning and development. What we are doing now • Considering how we can use the curriculum therapeutically • Consider the relationships between tasks, students and teachers.

17. Our understanding was expanded when we discussed that… Our Reptilian Brain was the “emotional alarm centre” for our brain. What we are doing now • Considering the emotional state of the students (and ourselves) when giving instructions. • Using the knowledge to help the students regulate and manage the feelings and decision making progress (and our own)

18. Using the rethink principles • Is the behaviour a result of an unmet need from the child’s earlier life? • Children without boundaries go in search of them • There are two people in the teaching/learning relationship • We cannot change young people only our reaction to them • Holding onto the ability to think and not just react is crucial • We need to notice what is working

19. How we have responded By creating or utilising thinking spaces, such as Behaviour Forums and de-briefing sessions so that we can reflect and off load. By using positive anchors more widely (such as “good books” “success walls” and even private anchors) to remind us all of positive times and what we can achieve. By reinforcing the open and collaborative nature of the service, so that we are able to discuss our feelings with each other in a non judgemental solution focused way.

20. How we have responded By reminding us that our feelings are important and influence student behaviour. By reminding us that we should focus on things that we can control (ourselves) By reinforcing the service ethos of focusing on the positives and on solution focused thinking.

21. What do staff say? • Made me more aware of the behaviour of pupils and how to respond to it • Made me reflect on my teaching styles • Gave me the opportunity to reflect and challenge some of the ways that I work • It made me think about how I react to the pupils and how they see me • Improved my awareness of my own feelings and therefore my responses • A better understanding of where our pupils are coming from and how we can help / support them in managing their emotions

22. What do staff say? • I Consider pupils’ home lives more • I am more aware of students’ behaviour in terms of power seeking, attention seeking, etc • I approach the way I speak to students differently, understanding how I could be placing my feelings for another person onto them • It helped us to understand how early childhood trauma can affect the adolescents we work with • It has helped me not to take the pupils’ rants personally

23. Skills we are developing Thinking consciously what underlying defence mechanisms might be in operation Recognising what is coming from us and what from the child Thinking about the child in terms of attachment Re-framing behaviour and asking ourselves what underlying need it might be showing us Creating positive expectations of students Planning tasks which take into account the student’s emotional and social development and attachment needs.

24. Overall the Caspari Training Made us more reflective practitioners Made us realise that “thinking” is action Made us consider more greatly that to manage behaviour we must manage our own. Gave us a shared vocabulary Gave us formats for discussions about students Made us realise that by being more aware of emotional states we can help students access education more easily

25. Assessment tools • Following the training Berni Graham was brought in to design an assessment tool to measure soft outcomes. • This has been a collaborative working exercise between us and Berni, and we are very pleased with the outcome. • As a PRU we make as much or more difference to these soft outcomes than we do to academic levels. • Progress, both academic and non academic are extremely important to the students at a PRU, and measuring both are vital.

26. Challenges • Having so much training of one kind caused some staff to lose the focus of “education” and make too much allowance for bad behaviour • The organisation of training for 100 staff • Using all our inset days in one year on one aspect of our work • Having to re-address the balance this year towards the academic • Balancing the academic and the non academic.

27. SUCCESS • Overall the whole experience has been enlightening, inspiring, developmental. • When we started the training we had just been restructured and there was a lot of angst among staff • The training brought us together physically and emotionally. • We had to work together, and learn together • It helped to steer us all in the same direction • It helped us become a team.

28. Thank you NCB and Caspari Jacqui Liz Michael Marie Jenny All the other presenters Berni