EQUIPAMIENTO COMUNITARIO

Another main theme that emerged from the school staff perspectives is the role and support. It seems that the role and support given by the school staff is very essential for the young people. This section discusses who the key person was in the young people’s life, followed by the role and support of the school staff, parents and the other professionals.

Key person

Although the role of the Principal Teacher Support for Learning seems to be very significant in dealing with the planning and preparation for the transition process, the findings showed that the Guidance teacher appeared to be the most frequently mentioned name (n=14) when asked about the most significant person.

In our school, it would tend to be the Guidance teacher that would be most likely to have in depth knowledge of the student. (PTG SC)

The Principal Teacher Support for Learning and parents emerged as the second most mentioned names (n=9), followed by the Support for Learning teachers as the third (n=5). The other names mentioned included the careers staff, college staff, other professionals, Health Service, Head House, Pupil Support Worker, an advocate and also one teacher mentioned a neutral person as the key person for the young people.

However, many of them also commented that sometimes it depends on the young people’s needs and circumstances as to who they were most comfortable with or had close relationships with and it varies from one young person to another, as described by the following teacher:

It depends um, for most youngsters, it would be the Guidance teacher, but you know for some of the pupils that we work with up in Support for Learning, we know them probably better than the Guidance teacher. Then it would be somebody from the Support for Learning whoever had worked with that pupil the most, um probably throughout the third and fourth year, would be the best person to do the, to be the key worker. (PTSFL1 SB)

In one case, one Deputy Head teacher from the special school said that she was the one that would deal with the young people mostly, although the Principal Teacher would also help her with the job, as she stated:

Well, it would be me overall but my Principal Teacher also takes the share in the transition process as well and she helps me to do some of the meetings and arrange the links, that kind of thing. Overall I would be the person involved. (DHT SE)

In contrast, the Guidance teacher and the Principal Teacher Support for Learning seemed to be more dominant in dealing with the young people’s transition rather than the Deputy Head teacher in the mainstream schools. This was clearly stated by one of the following Principal Teachers Support for Learning:

Well, I organise on, I organise the meeting and I organise the transition process, so I suppose it would be me. (PTSFL1 SF)

Overall, while the key persons are considered to be from the Guidance team and the Support for Learning department at school, parents were also seen as the central figures

at home. In other words, the key person can vary according to the environment, depending on where the young person is, whether at school or at home. It all depends on the person they feel most comfortable with.

The role and support of parents, teachers and other professionals

From the school staff members’ point of view, the role and support of parents, teachers and other professionals are equally important in helping and easing the transition process of the young people. There seems to be a good relationship between parents and teachers as noted by some school staff members.

Well, the parents I’ve worked with have been really superb over the years, they’ve been very supportive because they’ve known it, are really care about their children ... so it is a pretty intense relationship with the parents we’re having as well. (PTSFL2 SA)

Similarly, the majority of the school staff seemed to acknowledge the role and support of the other professionals from multi-agency as very essential in the transition process. Table 4.3 illustrates the types of support that the young people received from parents, teachers and other professionals.

Table 4.3 Types of support from the parents, teachers and other professionals reported by the school staff

Parents Teachers Other professionals

Participating in the school events (for example, attending parents’ night and meetings).

Providing as much information as possible about the transition process.

Being involved in meetings and making a joint decision with all the parties involved. Helping teachers to pick up

their child from the college during the link course.

Identifying and suggesting potential young people who will be going to college.

Supporting families by making a home visit.

Visiting college with the teachers and their child.

Taking the young people to college for a visit.

Providing the skills to the young people in a small group. Having a good relationship

with teachers (even as early as when the child was in the transition period from primary to secondary school).

Inviting speakers from college to give a talk at school.

Keeping in touch with the school leavers to ensure that they are not left behind or feeling abandoned.

Giving advice and consulting the young people about the

transition issues.

Backing up the young people whenever there is a conflict between the child and the parents.

Teaching the young people independent travel.

Training and developing the young people’s social and personal skills.

Helping the young people who have already left school and need help through an open door system.

Contacting and tracking the school leavers to ensure that they do not disappear off the radar.

Going out and visiting other places that are appropriate for the young people.

Establishing a good relationship with parents and providing information as early as possible.

On the whole, the school staff seemed to suggest that the parents’ role is really essential in supporting their children throughout the transition process. This could further help the school to make the transition more seamless for the young people. The relationship between the parents and the school (teachers) is also important and some teachers were found to be very good at establishing a relationship as early as when the child was in the transition period from primary to secondary school. On the other hand, the key role of the teachers seems to be focussing on the young people’s well being in order to ensure a smooth and seamless transition process. This was clearly seen in their continued support towards the young people to make sure that their needs are really fulfilled and met. In addition, their support of parents was also as important as that provided to the young people, particularly when it came to resolving conflict between parents and young people. Likewise, the role and support of the multi-agencies seem to be going well at all the schools involved. Perhaps this is due to the strong commitment and relationships between both parties (the school and the multi-agencies) over the past few years.