How Barnsley Council has supported sustainable improvements in SRE
Barnsley drugs, alcohol, relationships and sexual health
programme is an integrated, multi-faceted, evidence based programme
of work that responds to needs identified by young people, parents
and carers and practitioners. The programme has achieved measurable
impact in a three year period and is the 2011 winner of the FPA
Pamela Sheridan Award for excellence in SRE.
Background
There is a high level of deprivation in Barnsley. The
percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals are well above
national average and educational attainment is below average - most
secondary schools are national challenge schools. Hospital
admissions for young people relating to alcohol are particularly
high, and evidence collected through biannual lifestyle surveys
with Year 10 pupils show that sexual activity after drinking
alcohol is high, particularly amongst females. Rates of teenage
conception are also higher than average at 52.5 per 1000
(2009).
The Barnsley Children and Young People's Plan for
2009-2012 identified the need to improve sex and relationships
education (SRE) and drug and alcohol education. Work with schools
to improve alcohol awareness and to improve access to SRE are
itemised as priorities for action under the being healthy theme.
The commitment and accountability mechanisms attached to the plan
have been vital in initiating action and levering support.
Multi-agency approach
A 'Sex, Drugs and Alcohol' steering group was set up in
2008 with membership from a variety of agencies including the
Healthy Settings Team, school nursing and public health (NHS
Barnsley), the drug and alcohol action team, the youth service,
Young Addaction (a substance misuse service) and the looked after
children's team. There has also been input from the early-years
service and contraception and sexual health services.
The steering group provided a forum where lead professionals
could make crucial links, for example between education and health,
sexual health and alcohol. Having such a range of partners around
the table resulted in a more sophisticated map of local activity -
i.e who was doing what, where and when to educate and support
children, young people and families in relation to sex and
relationship, drug and alcohol education. Once gaps were identified
partners committed funding and expertise to develop resources and a
multi-agency training programme. This greatly enhanced the capacity
of the programme lead, who is SRE consultant within the Healthy
Settings Team.
The action plan devised by the steering group is reported back
to the Children and Young Peoples Trust so that progress can be
tracked in the 3-year Children and Young People's Plan. At a more
localised level there are 10 multi-agency wellbeing teams across
Barnsley - and each have priorities to address substance misuse or
sexual health within their action plans.
Resource development
At the outset steering group members identified the
variation in SRE provision and that some schools depended wholly on
external visitors such as school nurses providing one-off lessons.
The first resource to be developed was a scheme of work for puberty
education. A working party of teachers and school nurses discussed
ideas and reflected on techniques and resources currently used with
pupils. The resource was then piloted. School staff fed back that
they were worried about parent's reaction. The resource was amended
to include a parents' workshop.
Young people were consulted on the content and format of the
resources for 12 to 19 year olds; sex, drugs and alcohol awareness
and the attitudes to condoms resource. The Sex, Drugs and Alcohol
steering group worked with the Barnsley Voice and Influence Team in
order to tap into their expertise in participation work and to
ensure that a diverse range of young people were supported to take
part.
The full range of sex, relationships, drug and alcohol education
resources developed comprise:
- Puberty education scheme of work
- A resource for sex, drugs and alcohol awareness teaching
- 'How to talk to kids about drugs, alcohol and sex' - a toolkit
for practitioners who work with parents and carers
- Developing on site health and wellbeing services: A toolkit for
secondary schools
Attitudes to condoms resource for small group and one-to-one
discussion
The resources were developed in such a way that schools and
other settings can adapt them to fit their own SRE and PSHE
programme. This has been particularly important in ensuring the use
of the resources since schools vary greatly in how they timetable
SRE and also need the flexibility to mould the curriculum to meet
pupil needs. The production of new resources has been used to
stimulate practitioners and organisations to consider their whole
organisation approach to relationships, sex, drugs and alcohol
issues. Thus dissemination and training on resources has been an
important part of a long-term change process - not an end in
itself. The use of resources is monitored periodically using
internet-based survey tools. Many practitioners reported that they
had briefed other staff about the resources, used them to deliver
sessions within a planned programme of PSHE education and in some
cases co-delivered sessions with colleagues.
Individualised support for
schools
Resources such as the puberty education scheme of work are
available for all schools - but the programme also recognises that
schools need individualised support to be able to maximise use of
the resources. More than a third of primary schools took up the
offer of individual consultancy/training. Support included staff
SRE training, advice on SRE policies, presentations at governor
meetings and supporting schools in delivering workshops for
parents. Some schools were quick to take up the offer of support.
For example a secondary school that was offering no SRE other than
one off lessons delivered by the school nurse put forward a team of
teachers and support staff for training. The school now has a
planned programme of SRE and PSHE, which is shaped around the needs
of their pupils.
Results from the bi-annual Barnsley student lifestyle survey
have been disaggregated by school, so it has been possible to
provide schools with specific information about their Year 10
cohort. This data has informed schools about pupil needs' that they
may not have been aware of and is also a useful motivator to help
individual schools track progress and assess impact.
Developing capacity and sustainability
Training professionals to deliver SRE and use the new
resources has been a key objective of the programme. A training
programme has been offered to coincide with the publication of each
new resource. Resources are only given to practitioners once they
have attended training. This is in order to maximise participation
in training and to ensure best practice principles are applied when
the resources are used.
The multi-agency approach took time to develop. Initially there
were some issues with professional boundaries, but there is now
very broad commitment. The involvement of so many partners
and the strategic link with Barnsley Children and Young People's
Plan has been vital in securing sufficient resources to implement
the programme, but also to secure its' future by mainstreaming SRE
within local education and health initiatives. Use of the resources
and training on offer for SRE is now integrated into the
following:
- Integrated Youth Support Strategy,
- Parenting and Family Support Strategy
- Teenage Pregnancy and Sexual Health Strategies
- Alcohol Action Plan
- Drug Treatment and Needs Assessment Plan
- Healthy School Programme materials used in Barnsley
To secure sustainability accreditation of the 12 to 19 resource
is being explored as well as integrating the parent's toolkit
within the repertoire of courses offered by Adult and Family
Learning.
Holistic approach to sexual health, alcohol and
drugs
The decision to create a steering group in Barnsley that
addressed 'Sex, Drugs and Alcohol' together was in response to
national and local evidence that shows that sexual health, drugs
and alcohol issues are often intertwined in young peoples' lives.
For example, a member of the Buxton Youth Project quoted in 'Sex,
Alcohol and Other Drugs (Lynch and Blake 2004) said "We
are taught about drugs and sexual health, but teachers rarely
mention the links between the two. I'd like to see these
subjects taught together rather than separately."
By bringing together a range of agencies with interest in sexual
health, drugs and alcohol the steering group was successful in
creating resources and a training programme that effectively
addressed the links. For example, sessions in the young
peoples teaching pack include;
- Sex, drugs, alcohol and the law
- Pros and cons of sex, drugs and alcohol in relationships
- Influences and choices (social norms, sources of pressure and
ways to resist it)
- A step too far (alcohol and sexual violence)
Impact
Uptake of the training, resources and support services has
been measured and 82% of primary schools have taken up the scheme
since 2009 and 100% of secondary schools.
Nearly 300 practitioners, from more than 10 agencies have
attended training within the last 2 years including schools,
college, children's centres, youth service, health staff, police,
looked after children's team, youth offending team.
Impact is also measured through the bi-annual young people's
lifestyle survey. Changes were noted between the 2008 and 2010
surveys including a reduction in the number of young people
reporting being sexually active after drinking (59% in 2008, down
to 55% in 2010 and more significant in females (66% in 2008, down
to 58% in 2010). Full survey results are available on-line.
Key features
- The Healthy Settings Team allocated a relatively small resource
to improve sex, relationships, drug and alcohol education but this
went a long way because of effective coordination of a multi-agency
approach, pooling of existing resources and appropriate strategic
links
- Schools and other setting's have been empowered to develop sex,
relationships, drug and alcohol education that is
sufficiently flexible to meet the needs of children and young
people, that builds the long-term capabilities of their staff and
that supports parents in their role at home
- The bi-annual young people's behaviour survey provides an
area-wide needs identification and monitoring tool that allows for
school level information and measurement of longitudinal
impact
For more information contact: Colette Hallas,
SRE Consultant, Healthy Settings Team, Barnsley Metropolitan
Borough Council. Email: colettehallas@barnsley.gov.uk
Published on the Sex Education Forum web-site June 2011