Belvedere Infant School Nurture Group
At The Pioneer Academy, we are committed to ensuring that our children feel safe and happy in school so that they can build positive relationships and have the ability to approach their learning confidently and successfully.
However, we recognise that, for some of our children, the demands of a busy school environment is difficult for them to manage and leaves them struggling to cope with their emotions and anxieties. These children will often become unhappy, display anger and aggression or become withdrawn: these are behaviours which challenge and concern staff in equal measure. As professionals, we understand that poorly developed self regulation skills in children are often a symptom of missed early learning experiences and a lack of secure attachment relationships with the adults who care for them. We acknowledge that behaviour is a form of communication, that we have a duty to discover what the behaviour is telling us and to support children to develop the skills to communicate effectively.
For the majority of children, good, inclusive classroom practice and positive behaviour management strategies will provide the support needed but for others, a more tailored approach is needed. Through well structured nurture groups ,we aim to provide our most vulnerable children with unconditional warmth and acceptance. A stable and predictable daily routine, which focuses on developmentally appropriate activities, will help them to recognise, communicate and regulate their emotions. Moreover, through this carefully targeted and sensitive support, we enable children to build trusting and secure relationships with adults and a sense of self worth which will allow them to experience success in the mainstream classroom and beyond, avoiding the potential long term consequences of educational disengagement.
Aims of a Nurture Group
For some children with complex SEMH needs, a quality first teach approach may not be enough and, if these strategies do not have an impact, a nurture group intervention may be the next stage of support in the assess, plan, do, review cycle.
Nurture group principles and practice are based on attachment theory and allow schools to take a proactive approach in order to meet the needs of identified children. Through a comprehensive assessment procedure, we are able to identify, and monitor progress against, a set of individual early development targets. Clearly planned support, which focusses on providing discussion opportunities and social interaction, is delivered in a welcoming, calm environment. Nurture groups, following the recognised Six Principles of Nurture, allow children to experience a flexible approach to learning, more suitable for their stage of development and away from the demands of a mainstream classroom and the stress, anxiety, confusion and perceived failure it can bring.
Summary of Aims:
· To provide a small group setting (6 to 8 children) where they can experience support from 2 or 3 caring and suitably qualified adults who work together to enable successful reintegration into the classroom.
· To have a predictable, calm and purposeful environment and timetable, free from curriculum pressures.
· To develop self esteem and social skills.
· To develop trusting relationships with adults and other children.
· To develop personal responsibility.
· To help children to recognise and choose appropriate behaviour and self regulation.
· To support children to understand and accept the consequences of certain behaviour choices.
· To work in partnership with teachers and parents to achieve consistency between home and school.
· To provide ongoing assessment to monitor progress against targets.
· To prevent exclusion.
· To work towards a full reintegration into a mainstream classroom environment.