Promoting emotional well-being

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

Refugee pupils 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 pupils 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. Secondary schools play a key role in helping them to 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 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

Develop a holistic whole -school approach to supporting emotional needs. All maintained schools are required to provide a broad and balanced curriculum that promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social, cultural, mental and physical development. Teachers can use their freedom to adapt and shape the curriculum to meet pupils’ emotional needs and overcome some of the barriers these may present for pupils’ learning. Many teachers have found that the curriculum provides opportunities to include refugee pupils’ experiences and 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.

Promote social, emotional and behavioural skills

Guidance and resources to support strategies in order to promote social, emotional and behavioural skills can be found at:

Behaviour4Learning offers a wide range of information including available resources, training events and regional information.

Key Stage 3 Strategy: Behaviour & attendance website provides downloadable Behaviour and Attendance toolkit units which include strategies and support materials that can develop pupil support systems and promote positive behaviour.

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’s needs. Effective admission and induction practice can help schools sensitively to gain an understanding of a child’s background and current family situation. 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 pupils 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 pupils acquire the skills they need, both socially and emotionally. Primary and secondary teachers are developing strategies such as Circle time to allow pupils to share difficult feelings and find solutions to problems they are facing in school.

Bullying

All schools are required to have an anti-bullying policy and should monitor whether refugee pupils are experiencing bullying. For guidance see:

Don’t suffer in silence the 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 funded by the Scottish Executive 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.

Other websites offering information and support on bullying:

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

Peer support and friendships

Refugee pupils have identified that making friends when they join school is a key factor in avoiding being isolated and feeling left out. Many secondary schools are 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 on refugee pupils’ access to activities.

Multi-agency working

In some cases schools may wish to discuss concerns about a pupil 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.

Promoting well-being through creative activities: making a film (.PDF)

According to the young refugees in Glasgow, the worst aspect of life was feeling unsafe because of racist abuse and harassment. The case study describes how Glasgow schools and Save the Children developed weekend activities to support these young people’s well-being. The project led to young refugees making a film about their experiences. This has improved the young refugees’ confidence and self-esteem and the film has raised awareness across schools in Scotland.