Craig Goodall examines why looked-after children are particularly vulnerable to social, emotional and behavioural difficulties, and what we can do to help
Many children in care can experience social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD) because of their life experiences. In recent years, I have seen an increasing number of looked-after children being referred to the alternative educational provision (AEP) for those with SEBD that I work at in Belfast. Care settings can make a big difference to outcomes and those young people placed in long-term foster homes tend to do better, and are excluded from school less, than those placed in a series of short-term fostering arrangements or care homes. AEP and special school environments can be particularly effective at helping these children to develop self-esteem, form attachments, show empathy and demonstrate resilience in the face of many at-risk factors.
Some eight per cent of looked-after children have been suspended from school, with one per cent having been permanently excluded (DHSSPSNI, 2012). In this article, I will examine the link between being looked-after and SEBD, why many of these children are being referred to alternative educational provision as a default option, and what we can do to help support these young people.
Of paramount importance here is that the “E” in SEBD is often cast in the shadow of the “B”. This is fundamental, as developing the emotional wellbeing and self-regulation of looked-after children has the potential to reduce incidents of challenging behaviour or, indeed, school refusal and potential educational failure. For looked-after children, the social, emotional and behavioural difficulties displayed are often a direct result of being in care. These young people are particularly vulnerable to SEBD because of their life experiences and they require support in developing confidence to trust and form strong attachments with others. Significantly, according to the DHSSPSNI (2012) the number of looked-after children in Northern Ireland has increased by over 21 per cent from 2006 to 2012 (1480 to 1878).
Creating stability
There are two distinct groups of children in care: children who are placed long-term with foster carers, with extended families or within high-quality, small residential care homes, and those who are frequently moved from one foster carer to another or who are placed in several short-term residential children’s homes. Children in the latter group “are often the ones who are excluded from school, truant or become homeless” (OFSTED, 2000). The reality for many looked-after children is that their care and educational placements are often transient, leaving them in a constant state of flux. Unsurprisingly, this impacts on the amount of emotional energy these young people wish to invest in building trust and forming significant attachments with adults. This, in turn, can cause those charged with trying to support them to struggle with their own motivation to commit their own energy over and over again. Some young people who require the most support have yo-yoed in and out of the AEP where I teach. One month they are with us; the next they have moved house or care home resulting in them crossing the borders between different educational boards and health trust areas. With constantly shifting peer groups and school environments it can be very difficult for the young people to integrate and reintegrate. This is exhausting for the young person.
To use the game snakes and ladders as an analogy, these young people arrive and move forward one square at a time; maybe they begin to invest energy, commit, build trusting reciprocal relationships with others. They start to achieve and “climb the ladder”. Then, due to outside influences and an unlucky “roll of the dice” they find themselves spiralling down the snake back to square one. Do they play the game again? Often, they do not. This constant change is deleterious to the young people’s progress academically and, more importantly, emotionally and socially. These young people are in need of serious emotional investment from those caring for them, but it is very difficult for professionals to positively impact on young people who are continually living out of a suitcase.
The care setting itself therefore impacts upon educational achievement, with greater stability being afforded by long-term placements or long-term foster care. This is advantageous to the young person who can settle better into school and build more concrete relationships, and also serves to alleviate issues with attachment. Managing potential attachment problems, and developing social skills, communication skills, emotional wellbeing and self-worth should be important goals for professionals working with looked-after children. Once these have been developed, trust and belief in others can follow.
Building relationships
Young people need to feel able to invest in relationships with the adults and peers in their lives. They need to do this without fearing that a significant adult will suddenly be replaced by someone new when they most need them. For example, the move to transition teams at around the age of 16 can be a problem, as young people will often have to get used to new social workers. This transition point often coincides with major changes in the young person’s educational life. This may be one factor impacting on the educational attainment of some looked-after children. The statistics on educational attainment are revealing. In 2011/12, 58 per cent of looked-after children attained at least one GCSE/GNVQ at grades A* to G; this compared with 100 per cent of the general school population. Additionally, 25 per cent of looked-after children have a statement of SEN – many for SEBD – compared to just four per cent of the general school population (DHSSPSNI, 2012).
Many looked-after children will have many different professionals involved in their lives who are “paid to care”. Indeed, I have known many young people who have commented on the fact that those around them are being paid to be there. However, caring must be demonstrated and felt beyond this, and simple caring strategies can be very effective here: for example, a compliment, remembering special dates (such as birthdays), recognition that you are pleased they have attended one day out of five and that you missed them in school, or acknowledging that you have noticed that the child is upset and offering your ear. It is also important to enable the young people to be involved in decisions that affect them. Isn’t it better to use the time spent working with young people to have a positive impact, rather than highlighting the negatives? Isn’t it better to help develop emotionally healthy young people who can recognise, understand and cope with the emotions they and others feel and to encourage them to develop self-esteem, empathy and resilience? Positive school environments, whether they are in mainstream, special schools or AEP, will “help each individual feel personal worth, dignity and importance” (Freiberg, 1999). Surely this should be the cornerstone of education, irrespective of the school setting.
The mainstream school environment, with much larger pupil numbers and less flexibility than AEP, may mean that dedicating adequate time for the development of meaningful relationships with these young people can, understandably, be difficult. Looked-after children may be stigmatised and bullied because of their home situation. Being placed in alternative education may in itself be stigmatising (Berridge et al., 2008). Some looked-after children can become embarrassed, develop an unhealthy sense of worthlessness and become at-risk of loneliness by shutting out others. This is a defence mechanism for some – a way of combating experiences of rejection. For many, it is best, in their eyes, not to take the risk of being hurt again by investing emotionally in yet another person. Issues of bullying and loneliness at school can be commonplace for these children and some simply give up trying to develop peer relationships because of previous social rejection.
In summary, when a young person is in care, developing self-esteem and confidence is key. This is possible through building a positive, meaningful and reciprocal relationship with a significant adult. Often, teachers will be the least transient source of support these children have in their ever-changing lives. The support and care that these professionals provide is crucial to looked-after children’s emotional, social and educational future.
Author: Craig Goodall
Craig Goodall
Craig Goodall is the ASD tutor and science teacher at Loughshore Education Centre, Belfast. He is currently self-funding a Doctorate of Education (EdD) at Queen’s University Belfast: www.qub.ac.uk
