Relationships and Behaviour Summit - Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research: 28 November 2023

Attendees and apologies

• Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, Scottish Government (Chair) 
• Association of Directors of Education in Scotland (ADES)
• Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland (AHDS)
• Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists (ASPEP)
• Barnardos
• Berwickshire High School
• Brechin High School
• Bucksburn Academy
• Carrongrange High School
• Centre for Research, Education, Inclusion and Diversity 
• Children and Young People’s Commissioner for Scotland
• Children and Young People's Centre for Justice
• Children in Scotland
• Children’s Parliament
• City of Edinburgh Council
• City of Glasgow Council
• Clackmannanshire Council
• Connect
• Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA)
• Craigroyston High School
• Dundee City Council
• Education Scotland
• Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS)
• Falkirk Council
• Fife Council
• Galashiels Academy and Primary Cluster Schools
• GMB Scotland
• Gorgie Mills Special School
• Heathfield Primary School
• Includem
• Lasswade High School
• LGBT Youth Scotland
• Mearns Castle High School
• Medics against Violence 
• National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)
• National Parents Forum
• North Lanarkshire Council
• Oban High School
• Perth and Kinross Council
• Place2Be
• Prestwick Academy
• Respectme
• SAMH
• Saracen Primary School
• Scottish Centre for Social Research (ScotCen)
• Scottish Community Safety Network (SCSN)
• Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS)
• Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA)
• SEEMiS
• South Ayrshire Council
• St Michael’s Primary School
• St Modans High School
• Stonelaw High School
• Strathclyde University
• The Promise Scotland 
• UNISON 
• Violence Reduction Unit
• Who Cares Scotland 
• Youth Link Scotland
• Zero Tolerance

Items and actions

Purpose 

The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills committed to convening a summit on relationships and behaviour in schools, in order to establish a robust evidence base, informed by practitioners, on this issue of relationships and behaviour policy in schools.  
The summit process comprised of a series of themed events between June and November 2023 to enable relationships and behaviour policy to be carefully explored with partners. 
This summit focussed on the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research (BISSR) which published on 28 November 2023. The aims of the summit were to:

• to discuss the results of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research 2023; 
• consider high-level principles to inform decisions made at a local and national level around behaviour in schools; 
• to identify practical solutions necessary to tackle the issues identified during the summit events and in the BISSR, at a school, local and national level.

Format

The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills chaired the summit and the event comprised of a presentation on the BISSR findings, tables reflections and question and answer session with the researchers; and two table discussion sessions.
The information from these sessions has been collated and drawn into our evidence base.

Breakout session 1: Q&A with the Scottish Centre for Social Research

Following a presentation delivered by Scottish Centre for Social Research (ScotCen), delegates were provided with an opportunity to reflect on the findings of BISSR which included time to formulate a question for the researchers. 
A range of questions were posed around the methodology used and the groups engaged in both the quantitative and qualitative research. 

Breakout session 2:  Perceptions and impacts of behaviours identified in the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research

Delegates were asked to consider some of the main themes to emerge from the research, and what potential support and actions which may be developed at school, local and national level in response to these. 
These themes were: low level disruption, verbal abuse, physical aggression/violence; in-school truancy, mobile phone/vaping and discrimination based on protected characteristics. 
The following questions were provided for delegates to consider within group table discussions:

• What are the main challenges this behaviour has on pupils, school staff and other groups (i.e. the community, parents, carers etc.)?
• What possible actions, approaches and/or solutions can we take at a local and national level to manage and tackle this behaviour/issue in schools?

Feedback from the discussions has been summarised below:  

What are the main challenges these behaviours have on pupils, school staff and other groups (i.e. the community, parents, carers etc.)?

Pupils

• Low level disruption can impact on the wider engagement of pupils and, if not addressed promptly, could lead to more challenging behaviour.
• The challenges and potential stigmas which arise as a result of labelling children and young people as disruptive were noted.
• Some behaviour (particularly physical aggression) can cause children and young people to feel unsafe which can have a detrimental impact on their ability to learn.
• Social media and mobile phones can impact on engagement in class and peer to peer interaction.
• Mobile phones/vaping could have a negative impact on sleep and therefore could impact children and young people’s ability to concentrate in class.
• Vaping was increasingly used as a reason for children and young people leaving the classroom during lessons.
• Children and young people who routinely leave the classroom during lessons are disengaging from learning which can have a significant impact on their educational outcomes.
• The impact of not feeling valued or included was noted.
• It was felt that some pupils are unable to ‘escape’ challenging behaviour, such as verbal abuse, due to this behaviour being present beyond school premises (i.e. online spaces).
• The impact a challenging home life can have on children and young people’s ability to learn was noted. 

School staff

• It was felt that mobile phones were being used to film incidents of bullying which exacerbated the issues and created more challenges for schools.
• It was felt that the role of teachers was increasingly changing; with some feeling the expectation was for teachers to take on a similar role to that of a social worker in some situations, whilst other staff were being used to routinely monitor halls to prevent children and young people from leaving the classroom during a lesson.
• Managing and responding to challenging behaviour impacts on staff resources and wellbeing, including the time spent searching for pupils who routinely leave the classroom during lessons.
• The number of children and young people with ASN had increased which has an impact on resource.
• The perception of teachers being judged for the educational outcomes (in particular, attendance and attainment) of those disengaging in learning was noted.
• Engaging with parents/carers was important and could create challenges when this is not achieved.
• The importance of empowering and supporting staff during (and after) incidents was noted, as well as the impact these incidents can have on staff wellbeing.
• Staff may also have been affected by the pandemic, in terms of comfort levels of some interactions, and in behaviour management skills, particularly for newer teachers trained during the pandemic. 
• The importance of developing effective relationships with children and young people and the impact this has on resources was noted.
• The challenges navigating the different contexts of in-school and in community was noted.
• The rise in misogyny created challenges.

Other groups

• It was felt that vapes are too easily accessible and more needs to be done to prevent children and young people accessing these and increase parental/carer understanding and awareness of the issue.
• It was felt that children vaping had become a public health issue which needs to be addressed – children and young people need to know and understand the impact vaping can have on their health and wellbeing.
• Digital spaces were noted as being particular challenging as parents/carers cannot always keep track of what children and young people are accessing and are therefore sometimes not aware of the challenging behaviour they may be experiencing from peers, or the content being accessed.
• The benefits of focusing on the support and learning necessary to support children in early years was noted, as well as providing sufficient time and support for children in the transition years of school, and working with parents and guardians from early years.
• Broader societal issues were noted as a challenge – dependency on other services and the impact of not being able to access these has on children and families. 
• The impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on society, learning, retention of staff and behaviour was noted.
• What possible actions, approaches and/or solutions can we take at a local and national level to manage and tackle these behaviours/themes in schools? 

Local

• Developing a whole-school approach and clarity around policies and language – ensuring all staff, pupils, parents and guardians are engaged in the development of plans.
• Considering and understanding the reasons for behaviours, as well as the importance of tackling unacceptable language.
• Clarify roles and expectations and ensure the benefits of recording are understood.
• More focus on low level incidents in an effort to prevent disruptive behaviour developing into more challenging behaviour.
• Early intervention and the need to identify appropriate support and interventions.
• Tools and interventions should be proportionate to enable these to be applied consistently but, at the same time, reflective of the fact that not one size fits all. Bespoke support may be required for a small number of pupils with complex needs.
• The importance of embedding the voice of children and young people in decisions was noted.
• Ensuring staff have the support required i.e. appropriate training on behaviour management, de-escalation, interventions and support for staff after incidents.
• Potential opportunity to undertake more peer-to-peer learning, such as in visits to different schools and different local authorities. 
• The need to communicate and align to external agencies and services – focus on creating a sense of community and belonging to the school locally. 
• The importance of engaging, and working with, parents, guardians and carers was noted, as well as external agencies to prevent and address behavioural issues and develop meaningful plans.
• It was felt that it was important that children come to school learning ready – having executive function, language, self-regulation skills will require working with early learning and P1/2 to support children to be ready to learn.

National

• Developing a shared understanding of language and values around behaviour was noted.
• The importance of involving children and young people in this process (and research) was noted.
• It was noted that a consistent message/position on mobile phones would be helpful.
• A greater use and promotion of good practice was noted - a national picture of incidents would be helpful, especially for the sharing and identification of intelligence and good practice.
• The importance of access to quality professional learning for all staff was noted.
• It was suggested that consideration be given to initial teacher training to ensure behaviours in schools forms part of the package of learning, as well as important areas such as ASN.
• It was noted that it would be beneficial to consider the various policies/strategies currently available in an effort to integrate and rationalise these into a streamlined approach.
• The importance of raising awareness of the health impact of vaping was noted and the importance of considering ways in which to minimise/prevent access to vapes for children and young people.

Breakout session 3: Principals and actions required to create safe environments in schools and promote positive relationships and behaviours

Delegates were organised into sectors and asked to consider questions relevant to their groups which focused on the identification of challenges, actions and solutions necessary to create safe and consistent environments in schools. Feedback from the discussions has been organised into the following themes:  

Whole school approach

• The importance of engaging and working with parents, guardians and carers was noted, as well as external agencies to prevent and address behavioural issues and develop meaningful plans.
• It was acknowledged that it is important for children and young people to feel included in the development of policies and procedures – early engagement is important to build trust and understanding. 
• The importance of setting expectations for everyone was noted – i.e. staff, community, children, parents and guardians. 

Capacity and skills

• The importance of making the best use of skills and resources and ensuring access to high quality professional learning for all staff was noted.
• It was noted that the workforce needs capacity, skills and experience – underpinning this is resource and therefore a focus on retention is important.
• The importance of supporting and empowering all staff to report incidents was noted and the need to raise awareness of what it means for everyone involved.
• The importance of knowing what to record was noted, as well as the need for appropriate training to enable this.

Safe environments

• The importance of creating safe spaces for staff and children and young people to go to if they require it or if removed from class to self-regulate was noted.
• It was noted that timely support for those that need it can be preventative and consistency is important. 
• There was consensus about the importance of early intervention and the need to be able to consider the specific intervention necessary to support the child– not appropriate to implement a one size fits all approach.
• The importance of the explicit teaching of behaviours we want to see in schools was noted – considering the rights of the class (i.e. those experiencing the disruption) and teaching children and young people about accountability for actions.
• It was acknowledged that it was important to assess the support needs of children – behaviour may indicate an unmet need, additional or specialist support required.

Language

• It was suggested that consideration be given to the language used around relationships and behaviours – important to communicate why approaches are put in place, what roles and expectations are, and what support is available to staff and pupils.
• The importance of clear communication was noted.

Community

• It was noted that support for parents and carers was important (e.g. heath visitors and digital resources) to help engagement in school life.
• It was acknowledged that there are many examples of good practice already happening – this needs to be shared to support consistency and understanding. 
• The need to communicate and align to external agencies and services was recognised. 

Delegates were provided with a draft set of high-level principles based on the outputs of the summit process. It was explained that these were suggestions and were provided to help provoke discussion. Delegates were asked to complete a short poll to rank the five principles they felt should be prioritised which was followed by a short discussion. The results are provided below in ranking order:

1. There should be a whole-school approach to creating safe and consistent environments for all pupils and staff.
2. Knowing and understanding our children and young people and the factors which influence their behaviour is important.
3. We should consider opportunities to identify and share developing/good practice and make best use of data.
4. Approaches should embed a children’s rights-based approach and consider the voice of children and young people.
5. The needs of our whole workforce should be considered.

Closing remarks

The Cabinet Secretary thanked delegates for their honest and reflective discussion during the summit process. 
The Cabinet Secretary confirmed she would be making a statement to Parliament on 29 November 2023 setting out actions the Scottish Government would be taking to understand, evidence and support relationships and behaviour in schools.