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Ed Balls announces cash boost for successful behaviour programme

DEPARTMENT FOR CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES News Release (2007/0123) issued by The Government News Network on 6 July 2007

The Secretary of State will today announce an additional £13.7m over four years to improve behaviour in schools through the Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) programme.

This very successful programme had a major impact on discipline and well being in pilot schools and was also linked with increases in attainment. It helps young people to be more confident and resilient; resolve conflict peaceably; and empathise with others by developing behaviour skills across the curriculum.

On top of the £7m a year already confirmed for SEAL, for the first time Mr Balls will confirm there will be an extra £13.7m divided into: £3m to support the new secondary roll out from this September; £3.5m for the whole programme in 08-09; £3.5m in 09-10; and £3.7m in 10-11. The scheme is already being implemented in 60% of primary schools. This means that approximately 10,000 schools are already involved in the programme and over 2 million pupils stand to benefit.

The Secondary SEAL programme builds on the success of the programme at primary level and will be rolled out from this September. It promotes the hard-edged social and emotional skills all children and young people need to thrive. These skills underpin positive behaviour, regular school attendance, effective learning and emotional health and well being. They also contribute to social mobility and employability skills by ensuring all children, regardless of background, have confidence in their abilities and understand how to interact with others in a positive way.

Ed Balls said:

"Many schools that have implemented this programme have seen a marked improvement in the way their pupils interact with each other both inside and outside the classroom. The programme will make sure that all children understand the importance of being confident and interacting with other children in a respectful and positive manner.

"The roll out of SEAL follows tough new behaviour powers which came into force in April this year which remove any ambiguity over a teacher's right to confiscate items, give detentions and physically remove violent pupils from the classroom.

"These initiatives give teachers some powerful tools to make sure that good behaviour and an atmosphere of respect are the norm in all schools." The programme focuses on developing skills in the following key areas: understanding oneself; management of feelings; motivation; empathy and social skills. Some examples of the skills taught are:

* deal with and resolve conflict effectively and fairly;

* solve problems with others or by themselves;

* manage strong feelings such as frustration, anger and anxiety;

* be effective and successful learners;

* be able to promote calm and optimistic states that promote the achievement of goals;

* recover from setbacks and persist in the face of difficulties;

* work cooperatively;

* compete fairly and lose with dignity and respect for competitors;

* recognise and stand up for the rights of others; and

* understand and value the differences and commonalities between people. Opportunities to develop social and emotional skills across the curriculum might include:

* developing motivation through drama/English by exploring the experience of characters who have overcome difficulties;

* developing empathy through Citizenship when considering why it can be so difficult to keep the peace by exploring some current conflicts; and teaching children through PE how to work as part of a team and experience winning and losing.

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. We are encouraging a phased national implementation. We recommend that local authorities start in September 07 by providing intensive support to 10% (300) of their secondary schools to become leading practice schools, acting as trail blazers for the national roll-out. We are also recommending that from December 07 they support a further 5-10% (up to 300) of their schools which are ready to start implementing the programme. Within a few years, when SEAL is fully embedded in these schools, all pupils stand to reap the benefits.

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