Whose opinion takes precedence in a dispute over provision, asks Michael Segal – parent or local authority?
Your teaching staff must have the health and physical capacity to teach, but in assessing this you must make sure you comply with disability discrimination rules, says Yvonne Spencer
Meditation can help create calmer and more relaxed classes as well as help a school achieve great SAT scores, says Kevin Hogston
Multi-agency working to support vulnerable young people can be an important strand of extended school provision, says Lisa McClarence, who gives an overview of the counselling work she does in schools
Early Years Update focuses on the importance of well being, as part of a range of practical ideas to underpin the information in the Early Years Foundation Stage Principles into Practice cards
Early Years Update looks at the National Healthy Schools Programme and the key issues it aims to address
What can be achieved by SEAL over three years? Educational psychologist Cate Summers takes a look at results in the London Borough of Westminster
What does the Children’s Plan have to say about shaping up a more emotionally literate education system?
Chris Jenkins looks at provisions in the Young Persons Bill to increase the educational attainment and quality of welfare of chidren in care
Is the pressure of school life too much for young children? Roger Smith investigates
Starting and changing schools are big transitions. Former headteacher Lynn Cousins shares advice on handling these and less common times of change that children experience
Angela Youngman looks at some innovative ideas to get children moving
Jan White provides a range of practical ideas for creating enabling outdoor environments that support young children’s health, wellbeing, development and learning
Jan White, consultant in outdoor play in the early years, looks at implications of the EYFS for the development of outdoor environments for young children
The work of school nurses bridges health, education and social care boundaries
The happiness programme at Wellington College in Berkshire is described by Anthony Seldon, the master, Ian Morris, head of philosophy, and two Year 12 students
Early Years Update looks at ways of making transitions an enjoyable and exciting experience for children and parents
To err is human, to forgive, divine… Ruth Bradbury ponders the fallibility of senior leaders
Some participants in a phone-in programme about the roll-out of SEAL thought that happiness could not or should not be taught, and that it was simply a question of ‘common sense’. Emotional literacy coordinator Julie Leoni explains why she disagrees
Ingrid Sutherland outlines controversial new guidance on the provision of sexual health services in schools
Early Years Update looks at the importance of environmental wellbeing in supporting the five outcomes of Every Child Matters
A study conducted by Pam Qualter and her colleagues at the University of Lancashire explores the role of emotional intelligence in supporting students as they move to secondary school
Michael Segal explains the legal aspects of ‘special guardianship’
Juliet Neil-Hall discusses the importantance of attachment and meeting the emotional needs of young children and their parents
Many SENCOS work with looked after children. The results of a consultation on proposals to help children in care suggest ways of improving support for these children
Julie Leoni, head of emotional literacy at the Marches School in Shropshire, found her thoughts about attachment and trust challenged by the experience of acting as a support for a girl giving policy testimony about being sexually abused
Question: How must a local authority assess the special educational needs of a child in its area? What is the extent of the duty?
Joanne MacDonald describes an innovative approach to drugs education for young children
Margaret Edgington highlights the importance of providing children with appropriate levels of risk and challenge to enable them to develop skills for learning and for life
What is the impact of long-term stress on your physical and mental wellbeing? Steve Mynard, editor of Primary Headship, reports
Jessica Peters of the charity YoungMinds lays some common myths about self-harm to rest and explains how schools can support the young people it affects
Teaching regularly features in the top five most stressful occupations. Former headteacher Steve Mynard explains how to harness the positive effects of stress and prevent it causing physical and mental burnout
It will take understanding and patience to shape a situation where all schools focus as much on wellbeing as on attainment argues Colleen McLaughlin, a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Education in Cambridge
Yeading Junior in Hayes has evolved its strategy for putting emotional health and wellbeing at the centre of the curriculum. Headteacher Carole Jones describes how
Graham Haydon responds to the prominence of wellbeing in the news
Dealing with cancer in PSHE can promote health and allay fears, says Chris Rushbrook
What are the legal implications of greater collaborative working between education and health care professionals, asks Amelia Newbold
This sensitive area should be part of every setting’s PSE programme, says Margaret Collins
Being more aware of mind and body is the key to managing stress says Steve Mynard
Philip Jones presents a case study and discusses the difficulties faced by schools when providing intimate care to pupils who have disabilities.
Fred Redwood reports on a fitness profiling computer system for schools and colleges
As schools open their doors to new categories of visitor, they must take an audit of risk and danger on the premises, writes Sarah Freeston.
In two respects the focus of education has shifted in the 2000s.
Recognising and minimising risk in the school environment is a vital part of a headteacher’s management role, says former head Roger Smith.
In his introduction to a new column, Dr Graham Haydon focuses on choice and discusses how the decisions we make influence our everyday life.
Malcolm Rigler and David Loshak outline strategies to improve young people’s health.
In this article, Beverley Bailey outlines opportunites for working in healthcare.
Sima Goldsmith considers the environmental and financial implications of the sustainable schools agenda
Nikki Parker advises on how to help young people survive family disruptions.
James Park reflects on the progress of personal, social and health education.
Ruth Bradbury outlines the cost of staff absence to schools and explains how a range of practical measures can help staff to maintain a better attendance record for the benefit of themselves and the school.
Andrew Chambers tackles young people’s binge drinking through a new resource.
Counselling is often touted as a solution to challenging behaviour and as a way of meeting needs that are beyond the scope of a school’s pastoral care mechanisms. But is it? Adrian King, independent health education consultant and qualified counsellor looks at what it can realistically deliver.
The child who is sexually abusive needs treatment. A new report gives an overview of current thinking on the issue and makes recommendations for a national strategy.
Drawing on his personal and professional experiences, Mark Prever highlights the importance for schools of actively seeking ways to enhance the emotional wellbeing of their pupils. He also makes the case for pupils to have an entitlement to counselling.
Antidote director James Park and development director Marilyn Tew describe the challenge that schools face if they are to address a decline in student wellbeing between Years 5 and 10.
Jenni Whitehead discusses the issue of young people at risk of abuse through prostitution.
Claire Maxwell and Ian Warwick highlight some ways in which student mental health is being addressed in colleges of further education
In an edited excerpt from his new book, clinical psychologist Steve Killick writes about the importance of listening to young people.
A proposed change in the law would raise the legal age for purchasing tobacco. Peter Downes discusses the implications for schools.
If Jane’s story was true she had to be removed from a situation where she was at risk. But if it wasn’t true, was there a danger of making things even worse? A former teacher describes the tensions generated by the problem. Names and details have been changed to protect anonymity.
Jenny Fox Eades writes about the Celebrating Strengths project, which uses the Christmas story to explore emotions around hope and spirituality
Child abuse can affect a child’s ability to learn. In the second of two articles, Jenni Whitehead looks at ways of helping such children in the classroom.
A new programme from the charity Samaritans links in with current initiatives to create an emotionally healthy culture in schools.
The new and rapidly changing context of the Every Child Matters agenda presents challenges and opportunities for the role of the educational psychologist. This forms the backdrop against which a review of the functions and contribution of educational psychologists has been conducted.
Children can be affected by domestic abuse in many ways. Jenni Whitehead gives guidance on how schools can provide help for pupils and their families.
Antidote development director Marilyn Tew describes what she learned from a recent seminar on how music education affects student wellbeing.
Pete Saunders, chief executive and founder of NAPAC, describes how the charity helps survivors of abuse come to terms with their traumatic histories.
Emotional abuse is more difficult to prove than physical abuse. Jenni Whitehead looks at how emotional abuse is defined and how it can be recognised.
Jenni Whitehead looks at signs that show a young person may be at risk of abuse.
Independent drug consultant, Adrian King, questions the wisdom of drug testing in schools, arguing that it undermines the support offered to pupils through effective PSHE and sends out a clear message that pupils are not to be trusted.
Programme director Claire Finka writes about how the Sheffield-based Juniper programme helps children find a way to cope with stress.
Jane West looks at some misconceptions about giftedness and how to dispel them.
A free training seminar on gambling education will take place in London on 10 May 2007. The seminar is being organised by Tacade, a leading charity working in the field of PSHCE.
Why do so many people think that giftedness is a ‘seriously wrong’ idea? Dr Ruth Cigman argues that the way forward lies in ensuring that we recognise genuine giftedness.
Every school has a general duty of care for all of the children in its care. This extends to ensuring children’s safety on the internet.
Dave Cotton, Force Crime Reduction Officer at West Midlands Police Force, looks at security risks and gives safety advice for schools, staff and pupils.
Risk assessment and needs analysis are key areas of school security. Gill O’Donnell and Brin Best guide you though the systems that need to be in place to ensure that your school is prepared for all eventualities.
British Gymnastics’ play programme helps young children develop physical skills. Jo Prescott and Liz Liebman explain how.
Small children can get quite noisy and frenetic. It can take time to calm them down. Angela Youngman investigated one very popular method – to teach the children to give and receive simple massage.
Helen MR Hann looks at the help and support we can provide for those children about to move into Key Stage 1.
Helen MR Hann suggests strategies to help children transfer into the foundation stage.
Helen M R Hann, an experienced foundation stage teacher, looks at the practical implications of ensuring children’s emotional health and wellbeing as they enter nursery or playgroup for the first time.
John Cousins is a primary mental health worker, supporting children and their families. He explains what we mean by ‘transitions’ and how they can affect the child.
Children’s therapist John Cousins examines the concept of self-esteem, which is integral to a child reaching Early Learning Goals in the PSE area of learning.
EYU reviews a new report calling for increased government spending to bring about a childcare system that combines quality, affordability and appropriateness for all children.
Colin Noble explains how achieving national healthy school status supports the new ‘whole-child’ agenda.
Preparing students for undergraduate life can help them to make the most of university and achieve long term life goals, argues Dr Christine Fanthome
Robin Richardson writes in a personal capacity about DfES advice on countering racist bullying for which he acted as external consultant.
In his regular column, Dr Graham Haydon argues that the decision to smoke is not just a matter of individual choice.
David Cattell explores the comparative strengths of vertical and horizontal systems of pastoral care.
Preparing sixth-formers for their first weeks of university life has long-term benefits. Dr Christine Fanthome describes how to make the most of independence.
Peer support schemes can benefit staff and pupils. Jaci Smith describes one initiative and explains how to get started.
Margaret Collins explores ways in which we can help children to think about their responses and their reactions.
Headteacher David Dixon looks at the problems various forms of transition can pose for some children and suggests ways to help smooth those troubled paths.
Headteacher Mark Barnett remembers the trials and triumphs of transitions during his own youth and argues for a radical rethink on managing the process.
Healthy meals for children, pristine premises and lovely grounds are within the grasp of every school, argues headteacher Mark Barnett.
Letting children take well considered risks helps to prepare them for danger in the world, argues former head Bob Jelley.
A recent survey by the Drinkaware Trust draws attention to the lack of information that 11-16 receive on the dangers of drinking.
A new campaign calls on the government to launch an enquiry into the impact of parental alcohol misuse and develop new services for parents and children
Whether you are taking children off premises to visit the local museum or taking young people away for a full five days, you need to ensure that every aspect of your planning incorporates safety and protection planning.
Raising awareness and dismissing myths is critical in establishing self-harm support groups says Steve Matthews of the Mentoring and Befriending Foundation.
Global citizenship links can help increase children’s and young people’s knowledge of the wider world. The Manchester Healthy Schools Partnership created a close working relationship with three schools in Kabwe, Zambia.
This project supports the National Framework for PSHE and the National Healthy School Standard, as well as supporting the development of Citizenship throughout the school with some 1400 pupils.
What happens when a porcupine moves in with a load of moles? Using a hypothetical dilemma from the animal world, Dr Graham Haydon explores the perspectives adopted by female and male students.
A whole-school approach to food and health is fundamental to establishing good dietary habits and an understanding of the links between good nutrition and future health. In this article Anna Denny shows how shools can support children in leading a healthy lifestyle.
The cashless school will bring a dramatic range of benefits for students, parents and schools.
There are many techniques to develop self-awareness, self-appreciation, self-esteem, but what would be useful to use with sixth formers? Here are some of the exercises I chose, which can be tailored to suit most age groups.
The food we eat provides the energy we need throughout the day. In this article, we will explore the different food groups that provide sustained energy and describe which foods stimulate our brain and relieve stress. We will also consider some healthy alternatives when we have a snack attack in school or feel we need to grab that extra cup of coffee!
Many people have discovered for themselves the benefits of meditation and relaxation as a way of releasing stress and tension. More and more people are using short meditations as a way of getting pupils into a good state for learning. If you haven’t tried it yet, the following are simple techniques, which can be done at pretty much any age. You might like to try them yourself before you start using them with pupils so that you feel how quickly or slowly you might want to speak … and then practise leading each meditation in a calm, confident voice.
The space between ‘being available’ and ‘being overwhelmed’.
10 Ways to Promote a Calm Classroom.
If pupils feel safe, secure and, above all, happy at school, they are less likely to play truant and the atmosphere is more likely to be conducive to learning.
The Teacher Support Network called for a coordinated approach to improving teacher wellbeing as it launched a report stating the importance of linking up the disparate services that tackle teacher stress.
We have all experienced periods at work where things are very stressful and we cannot seem to get anything done, or other people and situations are making work difficult for us. Rushing around all day, not managing to complete anything or deal effectively with issues is a common problem. We sometimes need to take time out just to regain some element of control.
Bullying continues to hit the headlines. Despite the efforts that schools have made to get on top of the problem, three out of five secondary pupils say that they have experienced bullying. Former headteacher Roger Smith looks at ways of dealing with the instigators.
Headteacher Martin Ainsworth extols the benefits to his school of taking part in the Blueprint Drug Education Research Programme.
In her final article on how teachers use emotions, teacher trainer Susan Gibbs discusses why emotional safety is so important in enabling children and young people to learn.
If schools are to help tackle self-harming behaviours, says the final Report of the National Inquiry into Self-Harm among Young People, they need to ensure that young people have opportunities to talk about their fears and anxieties.
As curriculum managers are well aware, bullying can have sustained and insidious effects on the whole school — contributing to poor attendance, lower achievement, a less conducive learning environment for all and a generally less pleasant school experience for students and teachers alike.
Children and young people with complex health needs.
The joint DfES/DH guidance Education of Children and Young People in Public Care (May 2000) recommended that schools assign a senior member of staff as designated teacher to act as a champion for looked after children. A new guide for school governors on their role in helping schools support these children will be helpful to SENCOs in defining the designated teacher role and offering useful information and explanations about what ‘looked after’ means.
SENCOs working with pupils with emotional, behavioural and social difficulties will be interested in the findings of three recent surveys, which indicate the extent of mental health problems among children and young people, and attempt to improve professional support for them.
Since September 2005, as part of the new framework for inspection for children’s services, schools are expected to demonstrate how they are contributing to the five national outcomes for children stipulated by Every Child Matters and the Children Act 2004.
One day there was a knock on the door at a home for Alzheimer’s patients. When the matron opened the door, a middle-aged woman stood there holding an elderly gentleman by the arm. “This is my father,” she said. “He has Alzheimer’s and I have cared for him by myself for twelve years. If you don’t take him, I am going to kill him.” And she meant it.
Schools are failing to adequately provide for students’ emotional health and wellbeing. A lot of this is down to ignorance, the findings of a new report from Ofsted reveal – only half of all schools were even aware of Government guidelines on how to meet the needs of the one in 10 pupils who have mental health difficulties.