Case studies
Case studies: partnerships to support new arrivals
To gather evidence and develop good practice, we worked with supplementary and mainstream schools in two London boroughs as they began to explore ways of working in partnership to support new arrivals.
At the outset, the key issue supplementary schools raised as a driver for their participation in this project was the need for better communication between themselves and mainstream schools, in order to discuss the welfare of pupils and to ensure that the work they did in their settings was ‘in step’ with the mainstream schools.
Over to you: If you try out any of the ideas on the page: How local authorities can take a lead, or if you have a story to tell that will help others who are working with newly arrived communities, please tell us about it. We shall interview you, write a report, and add it to this website.
More ideas are being trialled now, and more case studies will be added as we receive more information about your ideas.
To contribute your case study, email us on nrc@continyou.org.uk
The following case studies show the partnerships that have been set up so far. We shall be tracking their progress, and recording their achievements, successes and solutions to any difficulties they encounter.
Case study 1: Parkwood Primary School and the Sahara Welfare Association (SWA) - partnership plans
Currently, Parkwood Primary School provide free use of a classroom where SWA provides a homework club, themed special sessions such as ‘story telling’ and other community-based activities. Following a meeting between the schools, Parkwood Primary School now wants to:
- Jointly develop an induction DVD and leaflet aimed at newly arrived pupils
- Offer a seat on the school's governing body fpr the supplementary school to use as a conduit for newly-arrived families and present issues as they arise.
- Communicate better around individual pupils support issues.
- Ensure SWA are aware if the homework given by class teachers so they can direct their support more effectively.
- SWA will take referrals from Parkwood to support newly arrived parents who require assistance with welfare issues.
- Parkwood will provide information to newly arrived families about SWA as part of their induction process.
Case study 2: Northumberland Park School in partnership with Efiba
This partnership has put a joint funding bid to the Children’s Trust to ‘pilot’ the following programme. If successful, they will seek to extend this further.
They propose a half-term project, run for five days, to provide a programme of activities for 50 young people, including:
- museum trips (inc lunch) to docklands
- drum and dance workshops
- traditional games.
- Screen printing (using school art equipment)
The project will feature a large community event incorporating a graduation ceremony for all the children who attend, including a performance with the young people wearing the screen prints they make. There will also be a DVD of the events and workshops.
Every second Wednesday, for eight weeks, the school is piloting a course to offer help to newly-arrived families around welfare issues and to offer language support. There will be two paid advice staff and three bilingual assistants giving advice about housing needs and making referrals for other support. The course will operate from 9.30 to 1pm and staff will accompany parents to important appointments such as registering for a GP. Also, they will advise and support newly-arrived families about school issues and run a homework club on one day each week.
Eighteen Somali parents approached the school to ask for support in setting up a homework club for their children who attend the school. Efiba has agreed to ‘mentor’ these parents and help them start their own supplementary school. Efiba is also providing lunchtime training sessions on mentoring newly-arrived children. They are also looking at developing a school magazine written by newly-arrived children in their own languages.
Whilst Yvonne Drummond (Northumberland Park Community School, Neighbourhood Learning Manager), after discussions with Efiba, has written the application, it will be delivered as a partnership. She is especially pleased at the scope for supporting parents.
'The parents of newly-arrived children are such an important part of what we do at this school,' she says. 'You need them on board to achieve the type of success we are seeing as a result of programmes such as these.'
Case study 3: Princess May Primary School with T.E.D.A (Aziziye) and the African Community School
All partners in this case agreed that the key issue was to develop effective communication to address the following issues:
Princess May Primary School felt that the first step was to identify newly arrived families that are currently at school and to offer them the supplementary schools’ services. The partners agreed to work together to develop a referral system to the supplementary schools for newly arrived families, which utilises information Azizye and the African Community School agreed to provide about the services they offer.
All partners agreed that family learning is an area of potential shared involvement. Princess May would like to refer newly-arrived families for wider support issues that impact on their welfare and Azizye and ACS already run courses for families.
In addition, the following were identified as areas that would benefit from joint work:
- Peer mentoring: the partnership is working to develop peer mentoring for newly arrived pupils.
- Local connections: to provide newly-arrived families with information about local support networks and access to services.
- Support groups: set up ‘newly-arrived’ parent support groups.
- Cultural support: supporting the cultural needs of newly arrived families.
- Learning English: support pupils and their parents to learn English.
- Sharing facilities: allowing the supplementary schools to use school facilities.
- Pupil progress/issues: They agreed to share information regarding the progress of pupils.
- Curriculum focus: to ensure that the pupils' work in supplementary school is in step with their classroom work.
- Community: to develop non-curricula activities that support fostering positive community relations. To achieve this, the partnership inteds holding a community event – an ‘International Day’, which will promote the school's diversity and the contribution made by Princess May and local supplementary schools in supporting newly-arrived families. This event will also launch a new information ‘pack’ (or newsletter) about the work of the partnership and how to access supplementary school provision.
Princess May Primary School will look at opening a seat on their Governing body for a representative from supplementary schools to act as conduit and represent the views of newly-arrived families, ensuring they are taken into account in the running of the school, and to ensure that the parents are aware of the work of the governing body.
