Safe spaces
reward schools create environments where everyone should feel safe. In addition, they provide specific places for pupils to take time out or get peer or professional support.
Spaces provide:
Quiet reflection: reward schools recognise that there are times when pupils need to take themselves away from busy social areas. Comfortable spaces are designated for peace and reflection.
We have areas across our school for children to go if they require a quiet space. We have developed our Reflection Room, Sensory Room, Zen Zone and Nurture Garden as areas for the children to go to if they feel overwhelmed or need an alternative space from the playground.
Friendship building: Schools also allocate areas where children and young people can go to seek out social activities. This includes friendship benches where a pupil can take a seat, knowing that someone will join them to talk or play. Spaces are created for quieter friendship groups and a range of clubs exist. Many of these initiatives are developed and run by pupils for their peers and have been part of the remit of pupil voice groups.
Within our school there are break and lunchtime clubs set up to encourage children to make appropriate choices. If they do not believe that they are in the right frame of mind to be around their peers in a positive way within the playground they have the choice to attend one of the clubs where they are welcome to discuss how they are feeling within that moment.
Case study: Newmains Primary School
The school has a nurturing approach embedded within their work and has created safe spaces that support this. This includes a nurture room, used for drop-in and group work. The school’s mental health co-ordinator runs a Chat ’n’ Chill, which pupils can attend through self-referral or nomination by a teacher, parent or carer. The sessions take the form of play and take place in the family room, which is full of toys, books and art and crafts to put children at ease while they talk. The staff member involves the parents if appropriate and offers them help if needed.
A range of staff are involved in playground monitoring and target their support to those in need. Pupils are keen to take on roles to help each other such as health and wellbeing champions, buddies, playground support and nurture support.
Safety for all: As well as specific areas for pupils to take themselves to, it is vital that the whole school environment is safe and welcoming. Pupils contribute to the development of charters for the classroom and playground, which create expectations about how people treat each other. Specific areas are monitored, both by staff and pupils, who receive training for this role.
Our Senior and Extended Leadership Teams form part of a daily supervision rota, in which key areas of the school, such as the dining area and playground, are staffed at social times. Our prefect team also help to organise the lunch hall in order to provide a safe and secure environment for all of our young learners.
Access to support: Schools have also created spaces for pupils to go to access support and guidance from staff, external agencies or their peers. Services are put in place in response to identified needs.
We have a youth work hub and partners on site such as Youth Justice, School Nurse and a Youth Engagement Officer. All of these services support our young people and families alongside school to address issues which our young people struggle with. These services offer one-to-one sessions, drop-ins or small group work as required, and can support mediation.
