Promoting emotional well-being

For many refugee children, the experience of leaving their home and managing the transition into a new country with an unfamiliar language and culture will be challenging.

Refugee children and their parents have left countries that have conflicts and human rights abuses and they have sought safety and protection in the UK. They may have endured difficult journeys to arrive here. Some refugee children will have experienced bereavements or may be separated from parents and family members. Others may also be vulnerable to stressful circumstances in the UK such as financial hardship, changes of accommodation and school, tensions at home, racism and negative attitudes towards refugees.

Most refugee children and young people are very resilient despite their experiences. Primary schools play a key role in helping them adapt to the changes they have experienced. Going to school can provide daily structure and a sense of normality and stability. It is therefore essential that refugee pupils’ access and enrolment to school be supported.

Good practice

Schools are promoting inclusion, along with physical and emotional health, through the National Healthy School Standard. The Every Child Matters: Change for Children strategy expects schools to create further opportunities to help all pupils develop healthily, succeed in their learning and achieve their full potential. One of the five outcomes for children in the strategy is Being healthy: Enjoying good physical and mental health and living a healthy lifestyle.

A whole -school approach to supporting emotional needs

All maintained schools are required to provide a broad and balanced curriculum that promotes children’s spiritual, moral, social, cultural, mental and physical development. Teachers can use their freedom to adapt and shape the curriculum to meet children’s emotional needs and overcome some of the barriers these may present for children’s learning. Many teachers have found that the curriculum provides opportunities to include refugee children’s experiences and to explore positive ways of handling problems. The QCA Pathways to learning for new arrivals website provides guidance on Modifying and adapting the curriculum for refugee pupils and other new arrivals.

Guidance and resources to promote social, emotional and behavioural skills which are also available to schools are useful, for example on the behaviour4learning website.

Individual children’s experiences and needs

It is important to avoid generalisations about refugees’ experiences and instead aim to develop an awareness and understanding of each individual child’s needs. Effective admission and induction practice can help schools sensitively to gain an understanding of a child’s background and current family situation, and i dentify any difficulties that children and families are encountering. Guidance on developing effective Admission procedures can be found on the QCA Pathways to learning for new arrivals website.

Enhance resilience and positive coping

Lesson activities can help pupils express their feelings in a safe environment. Opportunities for refugee children to articulate and assimilate their experiences can be provided through a range of curriculum subjects, including English and the Expressive Arts. Curriculum subjects such as personal, social and health education, and drama, can help refugee children acquire the skills they need to manage both socially and emotionally. Primary teachers are developing strategies such as circle time to allow pupils to share difficult feelings and find solutions to problems they are facing.

Storytelling and puppetry

Many traditional and modern stories explore themes such as conflict, changes in life circumstances and bereavement. These stories can be shared in storytelling sessions. Children can learn about how others have responded to changes and challenging experiences. Sharing stories about loss and bereavement help children who have experienced such life events to see that they are not alone or different. The Letterbox Library supplies a range of books on issues such as bereavement, refugees and bullying.

Puppetry can also be used as a creative medium to engage young children. As well as developing communication skills, puppets can also help children explore feelings and experiences.

Bullying

All schools are required to have an anti-bullying policy and should monitor whether refugee children are experiencing bullying.

Don’t suffer in silence the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) anti-bullying website provides access to a range of resources, including anti-bullying films and free downloads of postcards with advice for victims of bullying. These postcards come in English, Albanian, Arabic, French, Kurdish, Mandarin, Russian, Somali, Tamil and Turkish.

Anti Bullying Network the Scottish Executive website enables teachers, parents and young people can share ideas about how bullying should be tackled. It includes guidance on the use of circle time in schools.

Coastkid Brighton and Hove’s anti-bullying website features a character called Hussein, a refugee from Zaire.

Information and support on bullying can also be found on:

• ChildLine
• Kidscape
• Bully Free Zone
• Bullying UK
• Actionwork
• BBClic

Peer support and friendships

Refugee children have identified that making friends when they join school is a key factor in avoiding being isolated and feeling left out. The Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) resources provide guidance on helping children to develop positive friendships and relationships. Many primary schools are also developing peer support and peer mentoring initiatives. The peer support and friendships area of this website provides information and guidance.

Out-of-school-hours learning

By releasing tension and having fun and enjoyment, pupils can often cope better and show resilience. Recreational and sports activities also help pupils develop their language and social skills. Creative and group activities such as music, drama, art and storytelling help develop social skills and improve motivation and learning. The out-of-school-hours learning area of this website provides guidance.

Multi-agency working

In some cases, schools may wish to discuss concerns about a child with parents and other professionals. Together a decision can be made about whether a referral is necessary and which local service might be the most suitable place for a pupil to receive extra support. The multi-agency working area of this website provides guidance on how schools can develop effective multi-agency responses to pupils’ needs.

Case studies

The Haven Project: supporting emotional well-being (.PDF)

Launched in 1995, the Haven Project is the title Action for Children in Conflict (AfCiC ) has given to its programme in the UK working with young asylum seekers and refugees in selected schools in a number towns and cities, including London, Oxford, Manchester, Leicester, Hull, Liverpool, Cardiff, Nottingham and Glasgow.

The Haven Project, in Cardiff, is a school-based service that provides children and young people with support for emotional and mental health needs. The case study describes how the project developed and the ways it has successfully improved the well-being of refugee children.

The Welcome Group (.PDF)

Several schools refer children to Bradford Action for Refugees’ Welcome Group. The case study describes how The Welcome Group caters for refugee children and young people between the ages of 5 and 13, giving them access to a range of social and educational activities where they can relax, have fun, develop skills and make friends.