Barnardo's NI - Breaking Down Barriers To Learning

Barnardo’s NI Primary School Counselling service, ‘Time 4 Me’ which aims to increase emotional well-being in order to improve learning potential, recently launched a briefing paper entitled ‘Breaking Down Barriers to Learning’ at Parliament Buildings.

The report http://bit.ly/wiHGk6i is based on an evaluation of the service being carried out by Strathclyde University which has found that 88% of children who receive counselling from the Barnardo’s service show clinical improvement and the greatest improvements are for young people with disabilities.

 The counselling is also estimated to save in the region of £3 for every £1 invested and Barnardo’s is calling for its counselling service to be expanded across all primary schools as a cost effective early intervention .

 Director Barnardo’s NI Lynda Wilson said, “In three short years the ‘Time 4 Me’ service has grown from very small beginnings to being a highly valued support service. We have worked with over 900 4-11 year olds in some of the most disadvantaged areas of Belfast. It reflects the success of innovative, collaborative partnerships and shows what can be achieved to make a real difference to the lives of children and families.”

“Northern Ireland has higher than average rates of mental health difficulties and primary school-based counselling can be a cost effective early intervention.”

Education Minister John O’Dowd who attended the launch said:“Education is a valuable gift which helps equip our young people for the future and we must be able to support all pupils, regardless of their need.  The emotional well-being of pupils is critical in developing a healthy successful school community.” 

The Minister also promised to: “work to ensure that pupils’ emotional health and well being remain high on the agenda of all schools.  I thank Barnardo’s staff for their significant contribution in helping to break down the barriers to learning by providing support to those young people who are most in need of help.”

 Ends.

 

Last updated 12 years ago