Castle Primary endeavours to create the conditions for a calm and happy community where effective learning can take place. We believe in the importance of all children and staff feeling safe and happy in school. We champion positive relationships between:
We believe that by creating a positive environment, we will give all our children a better chance of success and strongly believe in the power of relationships, and that all interactions are the opportunity for a positive intervention. We believe that all children need to feel safe and emotionally supported in school for any chance of academic success.
The culture and ethos of our school is built upon proven research which shows that by adopting such an approach we are supporting the current, and future, positive mental health and resilience of our children and the community we serve, enabling all to engage fully in life and learning. This approach will support children in our school and particularly those who have suffered significant trauma in their lives and may be impacted by Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) (Appendix 1).
We believe it is important that our schools provide a clear, consistent and empathetic approach to behaviour which can be adopted by all members of the school community. Therefore, we strongly believe in ‘boundaries with empathy’.
To create the best possible environment to support positive choices and behaviours, and support Trauma informed approaches, we ask all staff to adopt a ‘whole school approach’ to support SEMH and behaviour. This approach is summarised in the supporting guide:
As part of their induction, all staff will watch ‘Our Approach to SEMH’ presentation and our ‘Building Relationships’ presentation which explains the rationale behind our approach. For a summary of these presentations please see Appendix 3. This will allow all staff to have a clear understanding of our expectations around supporting pupils’ social, emotional and mental health and to ensure a consistent approach. Some of these strategies are listed below.
We understand the importance of positive recognition in preventing unwanted behaviours. We are mindful of our use of behaviour-specific praise and focus on the ‘magic 5:1 ratio’ of positive-to-negative interactions. The 5:1 ratio theory is that for every criticism or complaint the teacher issues, they should aim to give five specific compliments, approval statements and positive comments or non-verbal gestures. These positive comments could be specific compliments, approval statements or non-verbal gestures. At times praise may need to be tailored in relation to the individual. For example, if a pupil struggles to settle after a break and does so well, this should be noticed and praised. Praise should be explicit, explaining what value they have shown, or what positive choice they have made. All staff should reward positive choices with immediate praise.
When discussing any behaviour with children, adults will do so in a Trauma Informed way by being empathic, nurturing and non-judgemental regardless of the behaviour that they exhibit.
Adults will support children to make positive choices through the use of ‘Positive Language’ and when appropriate, discuss with the child the potential consequences of their actions. This will not be issued as a threat but a supportive empathetic reminder of the boundaries that are in place. Staff can use ‘Scripts for consequences’ (Appendix 7) to support them with this.
When discussing behaviour with pupils, adults should refer to whole school concepts such as the Zones of Regulations. Although an appropriate sanction might be used, we believe that quality ‘reflection’ with an emotionally available adult is a more important and effective intervention to prevent further similar, unwanted behaviours. In this conversation the staff member should try to establish the child’s concern- what led to the child becoming distressed/making negative choices, the adults concern- how their actions are impacting on the well-being of others and finally a solution moving forward. This is a ‘collaborative problem- solving approach’ and where possible will be used after all distressed/challenging behaviours.
When a pupil is in a heightened state of distress or anxiety, they will not be able to hear or engage in these conversations. In these instances, adults will support the pupil to make a positive choice and their main focus will be to make sure the pupil, and everyone else, is safe. Where possible, adults should empathise with the emotion driving the behaviour, name this emotion and explain it is okay, but the behaviour is not. This should avoid a toxic shame spiral. In cases of distressed behaviours, staff should follow the CARE approach. Once the pupil is calm and safe, then staff can proceed with the reflection stage/collaborative problem- solving approach and putting in place a possible consequence.
Adults should never use threatening body language towards children and where possible, adults should use a calm and supportive tone when addressing behaviour and should very
rarely shout at a child; this would normally be reserved for a situation where a child is in immediate danger or attention needs to be gained from across the playground.
Where a consequence is required, adults must ensure that these are age appropriate, fair and consistent. Where possible we ‘avoid ‘punitive’ sanctions and will always explain why the consequence is being applied, and how it relates to their actions. We will also address what change in behaviour is required to avoid future incidents. We are also mindful that it is the behaviour rather than the child that is being identified as unwanted i.e. ‘I am concerned that your behaviour is currently unsafe’. We also believe that we must apply a sense of proportion to all situations and that the consequence is appropriate to the unwanted behaviour.
Positive behaviour is promoted in a variety of different ways at Castle Primary School:
Across the school all classes employ the ‘Team Stop’ signal by raising their hand to show stop. Children then stop what they are doing and return the stop sign to show they are listening.
The following six school promises were generated by the children for everyone. They are displayed in each classroom and reviewed each year.
When a pupil displays behaviour that is not in line with the 6 promises, it is important that we try to recognise how they may be feeling and provide opportunities to correct that behaviour. To do this, we follow these 5 steps and the CARE approach below.
Unwanted behaviour, low level behaviour
1st warning-Name the behaviour and remind of expectations. Use praise to support the child back on track.
Low level behaviour continues
2nd warning-Name the behaviour and remind of expectations. Use praise to support the child back on track.
Low level behaviour continues
Pupil given a quiet space in the classroom away from others to work for a short period- length of time appropriate for the age of the child. Pupil to miss 5-10 minutes of playtime to reflect.
Low level behaviour continues or behaviour involves aggression
Pupil to miss up to 20 mins of lunchtime play to complete missed learning.
Incident logged on Bromcom and Principal or Assistant Principal informed.
Low level behaviour continues, or behaviour involves physical aggression.
Child taken to Principal, Assistant Principal or member of SLT (or staff member called to) to work away from the class.
*For incidents on the playground the same steps are to be followed but children will sit out of play in Totnes class or the First Aid lobby
A sense of belonging is very important for children’s mental health and wellbeing. We believe that children who feel that they belong at school are happier; more relaxed and invest in positive relationships with both staff and other children. Therefore, we place a great emphasis on fostering a sense of community in our school. We will do this by;
When creating a sense of community, it’s imperative to listen to the pupil voice. Therefore, we will carry out ‘yearly’ pupil surveys to understand how all children feel about the school. Once complete and analysed the school will feed back to the children to show their voice is being listened too.
Our Pupil Parliament emulates the UK parliament structure giving children a real sense of democracy. Each class represents a constituency and has 2 elected Members of Parliament (MP) who attend fortnightly Pupil Parliament meetings where they can discuss constituency issues and requests with the Prime Minister and their cabinet ministers.
Children who need additional SEMH support may take place in interventions, or in–class provision linked to need. Teachers, Children and parents will be made aware of the expected outcome of SEMH interventions. SDQ’s will be filled out before and after intervention and Intervention logs completed to keep class teacher informed. Support will be continually reflective and may be changed or tweaked accordingly.
We have an ELSA trained member of staff. ELSAs are an emotional literacy support assistant. They have had special training from educational psychologists to support the emotional development of children and young people in school. ELSAs help children and young people learn to understand their emotions and respect the feelings of those around them. They provide the time and space for pupils to think about their personal circumstances and how they manage them.
Behaviour incidents are logged by all staff using Bromcom. This will allow the school to look for patterns, triggers and potential bullying problems as well as being used as evidence to support any funding applications etc.
All teachers will commit to a session of PSHE a week, to help support and promote positive behaviour, mental health and well-being. Please see PSHE & RSE policy for more information.
In the most extreme situations, the consequence could be a suspension or an exclusion. This will follow the statutory guidance for those with legal responsibilities in relation to exclusion (2017). This document can be found
here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-exclusion or there will be a copy in the school office.
After a suspension there will always be a re-integration meeting with the child, parent/carer and a senior member of staff.
The 10 ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) of trauma are forms of physical/emotional abuse, neglect and household dysfunction. They include the following:
Castle Primary School recognises the importance of supporting the emotional and mental health of our school communities. There is a substantial body of research evidence to suggest that the mental health of children, staff, and the wider whole school community impacts on all areas of learning, achievement and experiences. Therefore, we believe in the importance of creating an environment which supports positive mental health and where all children and adults feel safe and secure.
How can we achieve this?
We have a designated member of staff who has completed their training to be a Senior Mental Health Lead. The Senior Mental Health Lead will work closely with the school’s SENCO to continually review the SEMH offer in their setting and help implement new ideas and concepts.
A Whole School approach is vital in creating a consistent and successful environment where all children will thrive and have the best possible chance of success in all areas. All staff are encouraged to; use positive language, prevent problems before they arise and create an environment where all children have a sense of belonging.
All staff will adhere to the PACE model. So wherever possible all staff will exhibit an attitude or stance of Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy, qualities that are helpful when creating emotional safety and when trying to stay open and engaged with children. This, in turn, helps the child stay open and engaged with you.
All staff will use the CARE approach when supporting children who are distressed. CARE is a four step approach highlighting the importance of connection, empathy and reflection when working with a child in crisis.
Our school culture and ethos are inspired by trauma-informed approaches and the supporting science. The evidence based research that underpins our approach to SEMH and all of our SEMH interventions is based on three key models:
We understand the devastating impact of Childhood Adversity Experiences (ACE) on long term mental and physical health, but more importantly, we recognise that through ‘protective factors’, we can mitigate the potential impact of early trauma and/or interrupt the progression from early adversity to mental ill-health and early death. Therefore, it is fundamental that wherever possible, we put these key protective factors in place to support all of our vulnerable children’s short and long term mental, physical and societal ill-health.
Protective factors include:
“One trusted emotionally available adult in the school, community or home before the age of 18 can make all the difference. For many children this trusted adult will be someone at school” (TIS 2019)
When planning our interventions and whole school approach to SEMH, we believe that having knowledge of the neuroscience of mental ill-health is essential; we place particular importance to the ‘Panksepp Emotional System’.
Panksepp’s Emotional System identifies genetically ingrained emotion systems in the brain:
RAGE, FEAR, PANIC/GRIEF (trigger stress hormones) CARE (attachment)
SEEKING and PLAY (trigger pro-social chemicals)
Each system can be overactive, under-active or optimally activated. Children who have suffered trauma tend to have overactive (RAGE, FEAR, PANIC/GRIEF) systems and under active (CARE, SEEKING and PLAY) systems, resulting in behaviours related to stress, anxiety, depression and anger.
Through our approach and interventions, we hope to activate the pro-social systems of CARE, SEEKING and PLAY in order to restore a balance of the systems, which underpins positive mental health. We do not expect a child who has an overactive RAGE, FEAR or PANIC system to be able to successfully manage the demands of school life without extra purposeful interventions to activate the pro-social systems.
By activating these systems we can:
‘’The ability to form meaningful relationships is fundamental to mental health and happiness. It’s the quality of contact we have with other people that is arguably the most important determining factor in our quality of life. We can only truly develop ourselves through relationships with others’’ (TISUK 2019)
Our school is invested in supporting the very best possible relational health. Therefore, we are committed to implementing as many of the components of Trauma and mental health- informed schools Model Three (detailed below) as possible. This model is supported by evidence-based research which shows positive change in well-being and mental health, when implemented successfully and consistently.
Protect – Our priority with any child in school, is to ensure safety first. It is the foundation on which everything else depends. Our focus is not only on the physical environment, but also on the relational environment and the very culture and ethos of our school. We aim to never place a child in a situation that they are not able to manage. We do this through:
Relate – We agree that the ability to form meaningful relationships is fundamental to mental health and happiness. It is the quality of contact we have with other people that is arguably the most important factor in our quality of life. Therefore, we see the importance in:
Regulate – We recognise that a high Ace Score without the support of emotionally available adults, is likely to damage the children’s minds, brains and bodies. This is due to a high level of toxic stress, therefore we place great emphasis on supporting children in such a way that means we don’t leave them in a state of toxic stress. We do this by:
Reflect – It is important when supporting a child’s emotional and mental health to have those conversations around ‘big’ and difficult feelings. We reject the notion that “this is opening a can of worms”. “If I can’t reflect on my feelings, I am far more likely to behave my feelings”. We need to support them to understand their thoughts and feelings, body sensations and reactions and encourage them to identify new options and strategies for ways forward, with both their hopes and difficulties. We can do this by:
We feel that our ‘way of being’ and all our SEMH interventions listed below support all of the three TIS models.
Possible intervention may include:
We are committed to continually moving forward and implementing new interventions based on research. This is to ensure the relational and emotional health of all our children and allow our most vulnerable to feel safe and emotionally healthy to successfully access the classroom or at the very least, the opportunity to develop into mentally and physically healthy adults.
*Taken from the Dyadic Development Psychotherapy website https://ddpnetwork.org/about-ddp/
Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy.
PACE is a way of thinking, feeling, communicating and behaving that aims to make the child feel safe. It is based upon how parents connect with their very young infants. As with young toddlers, with safety the child can begin to explore.
With PACE, the troubled child can start to look at himself and let others start to see him, or get closer emotionally. He can start to trust.
This is about creating an atmosphere of lightness and interest when you communicate. It means learning how to use a light tone with your voice, like you might use when storytelling, rather than an irritated or lecturing tone. It’s about having fun, and expressing a sense of joy.
It is similar to parent-infant interactions when both parent and infant are delighting in being with each other and getting to know each other. Both are feeling safe and relaxed. Neither feels judged nor criticised. Playful moments reassure both that their conflicts and separations are temporary and will never harm the strength of their relationship.
Having a playful stance isn’t about being funny all the time or making jokes when a child is sad. It’s about helping children be more open to and experience what is positive in their life, one step at a time.
Sometimes a troubled child has given up on the idea of having good times and doesn’t want to experience and share fun or enjoyment. Some children don’t like affection or reject hugs. A playful stance can allow closeness but without the scary parts.
When children find it hard to regulate their feelings, anger can become rage, fear, terror, and sadness, despair. If this is the case, then children may also find it hard to regulate feelings of excitement, joy and love. Feeling these emotions can sometimes turns to anxiety.
Playfulness allows children to cope with positive feelings. It also gives hope. If you can help the child discover his own emerging sense of humour, this can help him wonder a little more about his life and how come he behaves in the ways that he does. When children laugh and giggle, they become less defensive or withdrawn and more reflective.
A playful stance adds elements of fun and enjoyment in day-to-day life and can also diffuse a difficult or tense situation. The child is less likely to respond with anger and defensiveness when the parent has a touch of playfulness in his or her discipline. While such a response would not be appropriate at the time of major misbehaviour, when applied to minor behaviours, playfulness can help keep it all in perspective.
Unconditional acceptance is at the core of the child’s sense of safety.
Acceptance is about actively communicating to the child that you accept the wishes, feelings, thoughts, urges, motives and perceptions that are underneath the outward behaviour. It is about accepting, without judgment or evaluation, her inner life. The child’s inner life simply is; it is not right or wrong.
Accepting the child’s intentions does not imply accepting behaviour, which may be hurtful or harmful to another person or to self. The parent may be very firm in limiting behaviour while at the same time accepting the motives for the behaviour.
One hopes that the child learns that while behaviour may be criticised and limited, this is not the same as criticising the child’s self. The child then becomes more confident that conflict and discipline involves behaviour, not the relationship with parents nor her self-worth.
Curiosity is the foundation of acceptance of whatever underlies the behaviour. Making sense of how the child has learnt to behave in certain ways can help with acceptance.
Curiosity, without judgment, is how we help children become aware of their inner life, reflect upon the reasons for their behaviour, and then communicate it to their parents or therapist. Curiosity is wondering about the meaning behind the behaviour for the child. Curiosity lets the child know that the adults understand.
Children often know that their behaviour was not appropriate. They often do not know why they did it or are reluctant to tell adults why.
With curiosity the adults are conveying their intention to simply understand why and to help the child with understanding. The adult’s intentions are to truly understand and help the child, not to lecture or convey that the child’s inner life is wrong in some way.
Curiosity involves a quiet, accepting tone that conveys a simple desire to understand the child:
“What do you think was going on? What do you think that was about?” or “I wonder what…?”
You say this without anticipating an answer or response from a child.
This is different from asking the child, “Why did you do that?” with the expectation of a reply.
It is not interpretation or fact gathering. It’s just about getting to know the child and letting her know that.
Curiosity must be communicated without annoyance about the behaviour. Being curious can, for example, include an attitude of being sad rather than angry when the child makes a mistake. A light curious tone and stance can get through to a child in a way that anger cannot.
You might make guesses about what a child may be thinking and feeling, saying this aloud, and keeping it connected to the present. It can be about having a conversation, almost with yourself, with the child in the room, without anticipating a response.
If an adult can stay curious about why their child is behaving as they are, the child and adult are less likely to feel cross or frustrated. As curiosity is non-judgemental, this can help the child to be open to how she, and other people, are thinking and feeling. Curiosity lets the child stay open and engaged in conversations.
Children then start to reflect upon their own inner life with their parent and therapist and start to understand themselves. As the understanding deepens, the child can discover that her behaviour does not reflect something bad inside her, but rather a thought, feeling, perception, or motive that was stressful, frightening, or confusing and could only be expressed through her behaviour.
As the child communicates this to the adults, the need for the behaviour may reduce, and with that the behaviour itself. The child’s feelings about the behaviour may change, with less defensiveness and shame but more guilt, leading to less of the behaviour.
Empathy lets the child feel the adult’s compassion for her. Being empathic means the adult actively showing the child that the child’s inner life is important to the adult and he or she wants to be with the child in her hard times.
With empathy, when the child is sad or in distress the adult is feeling the sadness and distress with her and lets the child know that.
The adult is demonstrating that he or she knows how difficult an experience is for the child. The adult is telling the child that she will not have to deal with the distress alone.
The adult will stay with the child emotionally, providing comfort and support, and will not abandon her when she needs the adult the most.
The adult is also communicating strength, love and commitment, with confidence that sharing the child’s distress will not be too much. Together they will get through it.
The impact of communication using the principles of PACE
PACE focuses on the whole child, not simply the behaviour. It helps children be more secure with the adults and reflect upon themselves, their thoughts, feelings and behaviour, building the skills that are so necessary for maintaining a successful and satisfying life. The child discovers that they are doing the best that they can, and are not bad or lazy or selfish. Problems diminish as the need for them reduces.
Through PACE and feeling safer, children discover that they can now do better. They learn to rely on adults, particularly their parents, and trust them to truly know them. They learn that their parents can look after them in a way that they could never do on their own.
When children experience the adults doing the best they can to understand them and trying to work out together more effective ways for the child to understand, make sense of and manage their emotions, thoughts and behaviour they start to believe that the adults really will keep on trying until things get better for all of them.
For adults, using PACE most of the time, they can reduce the level of conflict, defensiveness and withdrawal that tends to be ever present in the lives of troubled children. Using PACE enables the adult to see the strengths and positive features that lie underneath more negative and challenging behaviour.
A four staged approach to de-escalating
Connect
Accept
Reflect
End Zone
In order for CARE to be successful, it’s imperative to make a connection with the child. How quickly you make this successful connection will vary depending on the severity of the situation and the existing relationship you already have with the child.
The quickest and most successful way to make a connection is ‘Empathy’.
Example of Empathetic responses
“Oh no, you look really sad”.
“I’m imagining you must be feeling really upset”.
“Will you let me know what might help you right now?” “No wonder you are feeling x. It hurtful when Y happens”
If the child is extremely dis-regulated, struggles to form strong attachments or is not familiar with you, then this connection could possibly take longer.
In these situations offering them a ‘alternative’ can sometimes be the best way of making a connection,
“I can see how sad you are right now, I’m sorry you feel this way, I wonder if you wanted to help me with x” or
“I can see you really angry and upset, i wonder if you would like to x”
It’s important to give this time before moving on to the next stage. It’s important to realise that it might take a few attempts to make an initial connection and you may need to dig deep into your repertoire of tricks or even switch adults if needed.
If the child is not behaving in a safe way and you need limit-setting “it’s really fine to feel this, but i need you to be safe so i’m going to stop you doing x….”
When you have made a positive connection with the child, you can move onto the ‘accept’ stage. It is important to not make this too formal or overwhelming for the child. If the child feels uncomfortable or unsafe, it won’t be successful. For example, if your connection was them helping you do a job, start the initial conversation whilst doing this. If the child is sitting on the floor, sit down with them etc.
Use language that won’t be interpreted as intrusive.
“I’m wondering if you are/were feeling sad about something” “I can see you might be feeling a bit worried about something” “Will you help me to understand what that felt like for you..?
It’s important you don’t tell them how they are feeling but help them understand the emotion they might be feeling. If successful, you will probably receive a response at this stage, even if it’s just a simple ‘yes’. When the emotion is recognised, it is important to let them know it’s okay to feel the way they do.
“It’s really fine for you to feel like this”.
At this stage, don’t make any further judgements about their behaviour to avoid a shame spiral, linked to toxic shame.
If you begin to communicate the acceptance of their emotion and it is rebuffed, it is likely that the child isn’t ready yet to discuss, which is ok. Notice this and move back to the connection stage
“I can see that maybe you are not quite ready to chat just yet but in a bit, I would really like to understand what it felt like for you and what might help you right now”. I wonder if that will be okay?”
Reflecting on how the child is feeling is important for both a successful resolution of the present problem and for their ability to manage future situations more successfully. If you can help them name and recognise their emotions, then in the future they will begin to do this for themselves.
Tips when reflecting on their feelings:
The Zones of Regulations are very useful to refer to at this stage.
An effective and thorough ‘End Stage’ is crucial. If you don’t solve the problem, then it is highly likely there will be repetition of the behaviour.
Dr Ross Greene CPS model is an effective approach to follow during this stage. His Collaborative Proactive
Solution follow’s three steps:
Positive language scripts
Observing unwanted low-level behaviours.
If they are shouting out the answer, it is always worth noticing the positive so…. “Lewis it’s great that you’re so keen but I prefer/I really like……………………………………………………………………………… ”
Structuring a conversation to check- in
“It looks like you’re feeling really……….. I wonder why this is.”
E.g “Lewis, It looks like your feeling really sad, I wonder why this is.”
“I can see that your feeling really……I’m hoping you tell me why, so I can help” “I’m worried that you are not feeling yourself and wondering if I can help?”
“I’m wondering if……you are thirsty/worried about the test.”
“I can see that you’re not ready to talk and that’s ok. I will come and check-in again in 5 minutes and I wonder if you can tell me then. If you need me before that time just ask”. “Thank you for telling me how you are feeling that must have been hard for you.” Language to use when a child returns to the class after being sent out/spending time away etc.
“Hello…….. it’s lovely to have you back, please take a seat and I will make sure you know what you are doing.”
“Hello…. it’s great to have you back with us, I have missed you, please sit down you haven’t missed any input.”
