Young people's views of multi‐agency working

This article outlines the findings from an Economic and Social Research Council funded research project that investigated the impact of multi‐agency working on children and their families. It explored the ways in which young people experience multi‐agency working and it investigated whether young people perceive any benefits from a coordinated approach to frontline service delivery. The in‐depth, qualitative study focused on a cross‐section of five local authorities and collected data through semi‐structured interviews with young people and their parents. The study found that where multi‐agency working is effectively integrated and where different professional services are streamlined, there is evidence of a positive impact on young people and their families.     

Inter‐professional work and expertise: New roles at the boundaries of schools

The findings discussed here are based on five case studies and a small survey (n = 46) of how secondary schools are responding to demands that they collaborate with other services to intervene to prevent the social exclusion of children and young people. The case studies revealed a new space of action opening up around schools where practices were being shaped by ‘welfare managers’ who were employed by schools and were undertaking responsive work with vulnerable children and young people and the other services who were also supporting them. At the same time heads of year and/or heads of school and form tutors were increasingly focusing on children's achievement in school. The changes in roles and responsibilities were encouraged by workforce remodelling and changes in criteria for teachers’ salaries. However, focusing primarily on the work undertaken by the welfare managers, the article draws on cultural‐historical activity theory analyses of relational agency and distributed expertise to question whether welfare managers can undertake the work required in the new space of action without attention to the development of their core expertise.     

School‐based interventions for students with substance abuse

Experimentation with substances is typical for many young people, but unfortunately some will go on to develop substance abuse problems that substantially affect their lives. Successfully intervening with students who use or abuse substances is a challenge for school mental health professionals across the nation. There is a need for evidence‐based practices that school professionals can use when working with students who have substance abuse problems. This article provides school professionals in secondary settings with current information on student substance use rates, evidence‐based individual and group interventions, and discussion of the 42 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 2 (42 CFR). © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Person centred planning ‘in action’: exploring the use of person centred planning in supporting young people's transition and re‐integration to mainstream education

This study, by Emma Corrigan of the Plymouth Excellence Cluster and Community Psychology Service, explores the use of person centred planning (PCP) in supporting young people who have experienced school exclusion, in their transition and re‐integration to mainstream settings. Young people of different ages participated in the PCP process and multiple stakeholder perspectives provided insight into the implementation and outcomes of PCP over time. Reported findings indicate a positive impact upon young people's social‐emotional well‐being, attendance in school, and educational achievement, and highlight a range of ‘supports’ and ‘barriers’ that can facilitate and/or obstruct the use of PCP in practice. This research contributes towards practice‐based evidence at a time when legislative reform advocates a broader use of PCP to support special educational needs in the UK. Potential gains, pitfalls and further actions are considered to support a wider application of PCP within the new statutory framework and to inform implications for future practice and further research.     

Prepracticum Service‐Learning: Examining the Relationship With Counselor Self‐Efficacy and Anxiety

Prepracticum service‐learning is an integral part of the curriculum for counselor education students at a large southwestern university. Service‐learning is accomplished by placing novice students in school or community agency settings to acquire early, practical, field‐based experience. Activities are more structured and supervised than in an internship or practicum. Analysis indicated that prepracticum service‐learning had a positive significant relationship with counselor self‐efficacy and a significant negative relationship with student anxiety. However, substantial counseling course work and experience with counseling‐related work both had a stronger influence than did prepracticum service‐learning, indicating that the latter is more appropriate for novice students.     

What happens to pupils permanently excluded from special schools and pupil referral units in England?

There is widespread consensus in the research and policy‐related literature over the last decade that young people who have been permanently excluded from school are at a far greater risk of a variety of negative outcomes than young people who have not had this experience. These negative outcomes include prolonged periods out of education and/or employment; poor mental and physical health; involvement in crime; and homelessness. This article presents evidence from a small‐scale qualitative study of destinations and outcomes post‐exclusion for a group of young people considered to be at particular risk of such negative outcomes: namely, those who have been permanently excluded from special schools or Pupil Referral Units (now known as short‐stay schools). The specific focus of this paper is on the 24 young people's educational trajectories pre‐ and post‐exclusion; the reasons for their exclusion from school; and on what forms of alternative provision were available to them after their permanent exclusion.     

Self‐stigma and domains of well‐being in high school youth: Associations with self‐efficacy,self‐esteem,and self‐criticism

Self‐stigma is a phenomenon in which negative public stereotypes about mental illness are internalized and can undermine help‐seeking. Unfortunately, little is known about how self‐stigmatization relates to positive well‐being indicators among youth. A sample of 134 high school students completed established measures of self‐stigma, well‐being, self‐esteem, self‐efficacy, and self‐criticism. Analyses confirmed that self‐stigma was associated with overall well‐being and five well‐being subscales (autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relations, and self‐acceptance); the strongest associations were with autonomy and positive relations with others. The majority of these associations still held when simultaneously controlling for self‐esteem, self‐efficacy, and self‐criticism. Taken together, findings point to the need for greater awareness of self‐stigma along with an explicit focus on the promotion of protective well‐being in prevention work and interventions designed to alleviate the tendency for young people to internalize stigma. Additionally, findings have theoretical implications for the “why try” model of self‐stigma.     

Are the needs of children and young people with social,emotional and behavioural needs being served within a multi‐agency framework?

This article discusses the effect that recent policy and legislation has had on services for children and young people with social, emotional and behavioural needs (SEBN), particularly ‘Looked After Children.’ The article highlights the Government's overarching plan to promote social inclusion and effective multi‐agency collaboration and discusses the confusions arising from the use of ‘multi‐agency’ terminology. Two case studies of individual children then illustrate the manner in which collaborative working is either supportive of, or hinders, positive intervention. Finally the article discusses how general policy issues impact on practice with children with SEBN.     

‘We are the ones that talk about difficult subjects’: nurses in schools working to support young people’s mental health

As health professionals in an educational setting, nurses in schools occupy a unique place in the spectrum of children’s services. Yet the service is often overlooked and has been described as invisible. This paper draws on findings from a study, funded by the Scottish Government’s National Programme for Improving Mental Health and Well‐being, which explored the role of school nurses in promoting and supporting the mental health of children and young people. The school nursing service throughout the United Kingdom is at a pivotal point as its role is being redefined to align with moves across the National Health Service towards a public health model. This paper therefore offers a timely overview of the mental health work of school nurses, and raises key issues for future work. Interviews were conducted with 25 school nurse managers across Scotland. Interviewees claimed that the contribution of nurses in schools was distinctive, owing to the quality and consistency of relationship that they could offer, and the autonomy that the service allowed young people. However, significant challenges were reported in making this contribution, and tensions were evident in the conceptualisation of their role. The framework of resilience is used to discuss the findings on the significance of building relationships in promoting mental health.     

Re‐engaging disaffected youth through physical activity programmes

It is a cherished belief within physical education and sport communities that participation in sport/physical activity has the potential to offer young people a range of physical, psychological and social benefits. More recently in the UK, this belief has become prominent in government policies that, among other things, are seeking to re‐engage disaffected young people in order to increase their life chances and minimise the impact of anti‐social behaviours upon others. Yet, the link between physical activity interventions and developing pro‐social behaviours is not straightforward, and there is a lack of credible research evidence to support many of the claims made for physical activity to or to inform decisions about effective intervention design. This paper reviews key literature, focusing particularly on disaffected young people and physical activity interventions in the school context, and identifies six key issues that, we would argue, warrant consideration when planning physical activity programmes to re‐engage disaffected young people. In particular, it is argued that the unprecedented levels of public and private funding available for physical activity related programmes in the UK, and the high expectations placed upon them to deliver specific measurable outcomes, mean that the need for credible monitoring and evaluation is pressing.     

The influence of the school in the decision to participate in learning post‐16

The primary aim of this study, funded by the Department for Education and Skills, was to identify the nature and influence of school‐based factors in the choices of young people about their post‐16 education, training and career pathways. The study also contributes to the wider understanding of ‘choice’, and identifies implications for the development of careers education and guidance and decision‐making awareness amongst pupils and students in schools. It also further enhances the modelling of pupil decision making in education and training markets, and in labour markets. The research is based on a series of qualitative interviews in 24 schools across nine local education authorities. Focus groups were undertaken with young people in years 10, 11 and 12. Interviews were also conducted with head teachers, heads of year and heads of careers. A postal survey of parents was also undertaken. Four key school‐based factors were found to have a very strong influence in the choices and decisions of young people about their post‐16 education, training and career pathways. These were: whether the school had a sixth form or not; the characteristics of school leadership, ethos and values; the socio‐economic status (SES) of the schools' catchment; and the organisation and delivery of careers education and guidance at the school level. In the main, high SES schools see themselves as developing pupils for academic university careers, while low SES schools maintain a rather stronger commitment to vocational pathways. The academic ethos of schools offers a very powerful influence on post‐16 choices and decisions of pupils. The usual interventions put in place to influence choices and decisions appear to have greater impact in schools with a less robust academic vision.     

Engagement,passivity and detachment: 16‐year‐old students’ conceptions of politics and the relationship between people and politics

While there is a wealth of literature on young people and politics, most studies have examined their interest, trust and participation in politics as well as their attitudes toward and knowledge about formal politics. Little is known, however, about young people and the concept of politics. This article investigates 16‐year‐old students’ perceptions of the concept of politics and their conceptions of the relationship between people and politics. This knowledge is valuable for citizenship and social studies education, as an increasingly polarised political climate poses challenges to democratic politics and, consequently, to young people's political engagement and participation. In this study, semi‐structured interviews were conducted with nine students at five Norwegian upper secondary schools. The students varied in their interest and involvement in politics. A main finding is that the students perceived politics as processes related to shaping society, as decisions and activities related to ruling a country, and as the activities of discussion and debate. Three conceptions of the relationship between people and politics are presented: engagement, passivity, and detachment. In addition, while the 16‐year‐olds participated in political discussions privately and at school, they stated that they did not participate in political discussions in social media. Implications for citizenship and social studies education include the need to strengthen the bottom‐up perspective on politics and focus on in‐depth understanding of political processes and tools and methods of social‐scientific enquiry, as well as providing students with opportunities for and practice with handling opposition in political discussions online.     

Young people with high‐functioning autism and Asperger's syndrome planning for and anticipating the move to college: what supports a positive transition?

For many young people in England, the move into continuing education involves a transfer from the school where they were educated to a further education college. For those with high‐functioning autism or Asperger's syndrome, this can be a challenging process. Past research has demonstrated some of the problems that these young people can encounter. This article by Wendy Mitchell and Bryony Beresford, both based in the Social Policy Research Unit at the University of York, adds to the evidence base by describing how best to support these young people, focusing specifically on ‘young person endorsed’ practice. Data are gleaned from qualitative interviews with 18 young people with high‐functioning autism/Asperger's syndrome. Findings reveal that young people welcomed the involvement of practitioners; however, specific forms of help and knowledge were particularly valued. In addition, it was parents, as opposed to professionals, who typically emerged as the most significant and valued source of support. Implications for practice are discussed, including the support needs of parents.     

Informed consent,gatekeepers and go‐betweens: negotiating consent in child and youth‐orientated institutions

Gaining informed consent from research participants is widely regarded as central to ethical research practice. This article reports on research which sought to identify contemporary practice in this area amongst researchers working in fields where research participants are often constructed as vulnerable within the research process, and where their potential involvement tends to be mediated by institutional gatekeepers. Drawing on telephone interview and focus group data, the article focuses specifically on the experiences of researchers working with children and young people. It highlights the tensions experienced by many researchers between a personal commitment to an ethical framework which seeks to prioritise the agency and competency of children and young people, and the conditions imposed upon them by working within institutional settings where these principles may be undermined. This research suggests that the consent practices of child‐ and youth‐orientated institutions, however much frowned upon, tend to go largely unchallenged by researchers, to the detriment of the rights of children and young people to opt in and out of research on their own behalf.     

Riding the dragon: developing inter‐agency systems for supporting children

‘Better inter‐agency working’ has been the oft‐quoted remedy to many reviews of services to support vulnerable children and young people, and yet outside the realms of tightly focused specialist teams it seems to be very difficult to achieve. Georgina Glenny here reviews three case studies of interdisciplinary and inter‐agency working to examine some of the reasons for the difficulties and some of the factors that contribute to success. Her findings suggest that, however ‘loose‐knit’ they are, members of children's services can work together effectively if they feel themselves to be part of a common project served by an inclusive communication system. In the successful case studies the ‘common project’ was defined by an agreed central purpose to guide action within a defined geographical locality. Central to achieving this purpose was a carefully managed series of communication feedback loops to ensure good quality information was being shared at all levels. With this communication system in place the complex system of relationships and actions that resulted could be reflected upon and continually tweaked to ensure that ‘project purpose’ was achieved or at least ‘worked towards’ in a managed way.     

Children and young people's inclusion in public decision‐making

In this article Alison Partridge considers two examples of developing the participation and inclusion of children and young people in public decision‐making in Oxfordshire. The projects are compared with research findings focusing on the impact of participation on children, young people, adults and organisations. The author highlights the value and the challenges of such activity and outlines the learning in relation to developing a culture of participation within organisations. She concludes positively in relation to the depth of the contribution and the creativity that children and young people bring to decision‐making, while emphasising that the commitment, skills and resources required to effectively embed such approaches are considerable. At root involving young people in public decision‐making demands a willingness to challenge deeply held assumptions about children's rights and the existing power relationships between adults, professionals, organisations and children and young people.     

Confessions of the ‘unhealthy’ – eating chocolate in the halls and smoking behind the bus garage: teachers as health missionaries

By drawing on interviews with administrators, faculty and staff at one school in the northeastern United States, this qualitative work considers the ways in which school leaders negotiate, resist or draw upon discourses associated with health, weight, nutrition and fitness to understand and experience their own bodies and interpret their roles and responsibilities at the school. Analysis of the narratives suggest that school leaders saw themselves as public examples from which students might resist and/or mimic (ill‐)health. Further, school leaders believed that it was only through their active engagement in and display of health that they were able to effectively evangelize their commitment to the social project of self. Thus, while schools could provide an important venue for young people to experience diverse notions of health and well‐being, without a school leader’s knowledge of or commit to exploring these alternatives, this outcome is unlikely.     

Everyone Playing in Class: a group play provision for enhancing the emotional well‐being of children in school

‘Everyone Playing in Class’ is an unstructured free play based provision for small classes or groups. The intervention involves training staff in attachment theory, presenting up‐to‐date research findings on the role of play in emotional well‐being and relationship building, as well as teaching reflective communication skills. In this article Alison Woolf, who is a Member of British Association of Play Therapists (BAPT), describes how these weekly class play sessions can provide experiences that are beneficial for staff and for pupils. The essential elements that create the therapeutic intervention are described and explored, and set in context through their relationship to SEAL. The ethical considerations of school staff providing therapeutic opportunities are considered. Results of pre‐ and post‐intervention assessments are given, and the responses of staff and pupils to the sessions are summarised. Results show improvements for pupils in the areas of self‐esteem and of social development. Most significantly the results demonstrate an increase in the staff's ability to understand and respond to the children in their class.     

Associations between socio‐economic status (including school‐ and pupil‐level interactions) and student perceptions of school environment and health in English secondary schools

This article examines interactions between school‐level and pupil‐level measures of socio‐economic status for pupil reports of the school environment and a range of risk behaviours and health outcomes. The baseline survey for the INCLUSIVE trial provided data on pupil affluence and pupil reports of the school environment, smoking, drinking, anti‐social behaviour at school, quality of life and psychological wellbeing for over 6,000 pupils (aged 11–12 years) in 40 schools within a 1‐hour train journey from central London. The level of socio‐economic disadvantage of the school was measured using the percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals. Multilevel regression models examined the association between pupil affluence, the socio‐economic composition of the school and the interaction between these with the school environment, risk behaviours and health outcomes. Our findings provide some evidence for interactions, suggesting that less affluent pupils reported lower psychological wellbeing and quality of life in schools with more socio‐economically advantaged intakes. There appears to be a complex relationship for anti‐social behaviour. Where pupil affluence and school socio‐economic composition were discordant, pupils reported a higher number of anti‐social behaviours. This article provides further evidence that less affluent pupils are more likely to engage in a variety of risk behaviours and experience worse health outcomes when they attend schools with more socio‐economically advantaged intakes, supporting some of the mechanisms described in the theory of human functioning and school organisation.