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FRIENDS for Life By Kathryn Davidson, Educational Psychologist (edited by Mike Simons) Description of FRIENDS for Life FRIENDS for Life (FRIENDS) is a 10 session programme which has been designed to prevent, and provide early intervention for, anxiety and depression. It is based upon the same theoretical model as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, looking at how the mind, body and behaviour interact to influence our experience of anxiety. The activities are purposeful in their aim to increase children‟s skil ls in managing anxiety, yet they are presented in a friendly, engaging manner. The sessions develop core emotional literacy skills through fun activities which are appealing to the age group the materials are designed for. By raising pupil‟s skills in a number of areas, such as; identifying and managing their own feelings, helping them to find ways to relax, supporting them in exploring solutions and developing plans to overcome difficulties, encouraging young people to reward themselves when they have done well and working to raise their self-confidence they are supported in managing lifes everyday knocks and hurdles. Sequences of activities throughout the sessions reinforce the core messages so that the skills are embedded within a young persons coping strategies to enable them to manage difficulties more effectively. In this way, one of the aims of the programme is to raise young people’s levels of „resilience‟. Resilience is defined as a person’s ability to „bounce back‟ following a difficult event. High levels of resilience are seen as supportive in preventing the onset of mental health difficulties. The programme is clearly set out with easy to follow lesson plans for each session (1.5 2 hours for each lesson). The sessions need to be delivered as part of the whole programme, but FRIENDS for Life can be delivered in a flexible way, either as whole class sessions, as a small group programme or as individual therapy sessions. However, it is widely recommended that the programme is used on a whole class, universal basis. In this way all pupils learn the skills and develop their knowledge and confidence together, they can then model strategies for each other and keep the ideas „alive‟. The programme uses a wholly positive approach to teaching new skills and seeks to enhance skills that pupils already have. In this way, all pupils can benefit, they can support each other in the use of their new skills and they can provide effective support networks for each other as they grow up. FRIENDS was developed in Australia by Dr Paula Barrett, a clinical psychologist who is now working as an Associate Professor with the Postgraduate Clinical Program at Griffith University in Brisbane. The materials have expanded over the years and now include a Key Stage 2/3 programme „FRIENDS for Life: For Children‟, a Key Stage 3 / 4 programme called „FRIENDS for Life: For Youth‟ and Key Stage 1 materials called „Fun Friends‟. Further details can be found on the following website http://friendsprograms.com/. The programme has been well received on an international level. It is currently being implemented in at least 12 countries. The World Health Organisation (WHO) endorse FRIENDS (for Children and for Youth) as a well researched programme that may be used to enhance emotional resilience and prevent the onset of mental health problems („Prevention of FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

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FRIENDS for Life

By Kathryn Davidson, Educational Psychologist (edited by Mike Simons)

Description of FRIENDS for Life FRIENDS for Life (FRIENDS) is a 10 session programme which has been designed to prevent, and provide early intervention for, anxiety and depression. It is based upon the same theoretical model as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, looking at how the mind, body and behaviour interact to influence our experience of anxiety. The activities are purposeful in their aim to increase children‟s skills in managing anxiety, yet they are presented in a friendly, engaging manner. The sessions develop core emotional literacy skills through fun activities which are appealing to the age group the materials are designed for. By raising pupil‟s skills in a number of areas, such as; identifying and managing their own feelings, helping them to find ways to relax, supporting them in exploring solutions and developing plans to overcome difficulties, encouraging young people to reward themselves when they have done well and working to raise their self-confidence they are supported in managing life’s everyday knocks and hurdles. Sequences of activities throughout the sessions reinforce the core messages so that the skills are embedded within a young person’s coping strategies to enable them to manage difficulties more effectively. In this way, one of the aims of the programme is to raise young people’s levels of „resilience‟. Resilience is defined as a person’s ability to „bounce back‟ following a difficult event. High levels of resilience are seen as supportive in preventing the onset of mental health difficulties. The programme is clearly set out with easy to follow lesson plans for each session (1.5 – 2 hours for each lesson). The sessions need to be delivered as part of the whole programme, but FRIENDS for Life can be delivered in a flexible way, either as whole class sessions, as a small group programme or as individual therapy sessions. However, it is widely recommended that the programme is used on a whole class, universal basis. In this way all pupils learn the skills and develop their knowledge and confidence together, they can then model strategies for each other and keep the ideas „alive‟. The programme uses a wholly positive approach to teaching new skills and seeks to enhance skills that pupils already have. In this way, all pupils can benefit, they can support each other in the use of their new skills and they can provide effective support networks for each other as they grow up. FRIENDS was developed in Australia by Dr Paula Barrett, a clinical psychologist who is

now working as an Associate Professor with the Postgraduate Clinical Program at

Griffith University in Brisbane. The materials have expanded over the years and now

include a Key Stage 2/3 programme „FRIENDS for Life: For Children‟, a Key Stage 3 / 4

programme called „FRIENDS for Life: For Youth‟ and Key Stage 1 materials called „Fun

Friends‟. Further details can be found on the following website

http://friendsprograms.com/. The programme has been well received on an

international level. It is currently being implemented in at least 12 countries. The

World Health Organisation (WHO) endorse FRIENDS (for Children and for Youth) as

a well researched programme that may be used to enhance emotional resilience and

prevent the onset of mental health problems („Prevention of

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Mental Disorders, WHO, 2004). In the current TaMHS project we have focused mainly on the Key Stage 2 and 3 materials „FRIENDS for Life: For Children‟.

Rationale for Including FRIENDS in TaMHS Project

International and National Research

FRIENDS was initially designed to teach children skills and techniques to cope with and manage anxiety. Research has shown that there has been an increase in the number of young people experiencing difficulties with anxiety. A study by Costello et al. 2003 looked at the frequency of mental health difficulties in children and adolescents aged between 9 and 16 in America. The study of 1420 young people found that by the age of 16, 36% of children were identified as having a recognised mental health disorder and health problem. In the UK it would appear that around 10% of children aged 5 – 15 are diagnosed with a mental health difficulty, with around 4% experiencing difficulties with anxiety and depression (Meltzer et. al. The Office for National Statistics, 2000). Therefore, there is growing interest in finding materials that will teach young people core skills and reduce levels of anxiety. FRIENDS is supported by a strong research base that shows it is effective in reducing anxiety levels in children and young people.

Early research showed that up to 80% of children who were assessed as being „clinically anxious‟ improved to being rated within the „average‟ range following implementation of the programme (e.g. Barrett et. al., 1996). A further study found that FRIENDS was successful in reducing anxiety rates among 7 – 14 year olds who had been found to have „mild to moderate‟ anxiety disorders and in preventing the onset of a disorder in children who had shown early features of an anxiety disorder before beginning the FRIENDS intervention (Dadds, 1997).

The benefits of the programme have been shown to be sustainable with children continuing to show no signs of an anxiety disorder 6 years after completing the sessions (Barrett et. al, 2001, Lowry-Webster et al, 2003). The programme appears to be equally effective whether it is run by a teacher or a psychologist (Barrett and Turner, 2001). Furthermore, research found that children who did not show concerning levels of anxiety when originally tested also benefited from the programme and demonstrated improvements in resiliency measures when they had completed all the FRIENDS sessions. Children have also been shown to be more socially competent and to use more positive coping strategies after taking part in FRIENDS (Conradt and Essau, 2003). Furthermore, there is evidence of increased levels of self esteem when FRIENDS is taught to whole class groups of 10 year old children (Stallard et. al, 2005) which are maintained a year after the programme has finished (Stallard et el 2007).

A study by Lock et al al. (2003) explored differences in the effectiveness of the approach between varying year groups. 336 9 – 10 year olds and 401 14 – 16 year olds completed the FRIENDS programmed. Results showed that the younger group of children achieved the greatest changes in anxiety symptoms, suggesting that early intervention may be more helpful than later involvement with the programme.

More recently (2010) Liddle and Macmillan asked teachers from 2 primary and 2 secondary schools to select pupils who they considered to have high anxiety and low FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

mood and low self esteem. After completing the FRIENDS sessions pupils showed improvements in anxiety (measured by the Spence Children‟s Anxiety Scales) and low mood (measured by Children‟s Depression Inventory) which were statistically significant and all benefits were sustained at a four-month follow up evaluation. There were also increases in self esteem (as measured by the Culture-free Self Esteem Questionnaire) which were maintained at the four-month follow up.

Amidst all the positive evidence to indicate FRIENDS as a successful approach to prevent, and learn how to manage feelings of, anxiety, it would also appear to be an enjoyable programme. In 2010 Stallard comments that out of 1413 pupils who had completed the FRIENDS programme, 81% said it was „fun‟, 67% felt they had learned new skills and 69% would recommend it to a friend.

All the above evidence, coupled with Katherine Weare‟s extensive review of „what works‟ in effective approaches to promote mental health and wellbeing in schools (see Table 1) suggest that FRIENDS provides a robust and helpful way of preventing mental health difficulties and promoting emotional wellbeing within our schools.

Table 1 - The Key Ingredients of Effective Approaches to Promote

Mental Health and Wellbeing in Schools

The Key Ingredients of Effective Approaches to Promote Mental

Health and Wellbeing in Schools:

Evidence based Balance universal, targeted and indicated Whole school Skill development Peer led work Integrated across schools Active methodologies Supportive culture and environment Effective partnerships – parents and community and agencies High quality implementation (e.g. explicit guidelines, possibly manualised) Leadership and staff development

Initiation and Experience of FRIENDS in Northamptonshire Schools

Prior to the TaMHS Project

In January 2008 a one day training course was run in Northamptonshire by Lincolnshire Educational Psychology Service in order to train 8 EPs, alongside 2 representatives from each pilot project school, a Specialist Teacher-Mental Health and teachers from the Looked After Children‟s Team. This enabled educational

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

psychologists (EPs) to support 3 schools in the implementation and evaluation of the intervention.

The successful pilot project found that teachers and students enjoyed the programme. Students said they would recommend FRIENDS to other schools. Feedback from focus group discussions showed that children as young as Year 3 could talk fluently about their thoughts, linking them with their feelings and behaviour. Parents were appreciative and said that they wished something similar had been in place when they were at school. Emotional Literacy scores (as measured by the Emotional Literacy Checklist) improved following the intervention, both when used in small group and whole class situations. Overall, FRIENDS taught an effective range of skills in an accessible manner. Children were able to apply the skills to a range of situations. The skills learned could easily be cross-referenced to the 5 core areas of the SEAL curriculum.

The pilot project resulted in further interest being expressed by a wider range of EPs in the programme. In September 2008 an approved trainer from the Pathways agency in Australia was invited to Northamptonshire to provide a 2 day course to train a number of EPs to be trainers for FRIENDS. Since 2008, six 1 day training courses have been run for teachers in schools to enable them to deliver the programme. Staff in approximately 40 schools across the county as well as county specialist Teachers of the Deaf have accessed the training. EPs have also delivered several „taster‟ workshop sessions to encourage members of school staff and professional colleagues to explore the intervention further.

Implementation of Training and Provision of FRIENDS in TaMHS

Project

All 9 of the eligible (KS2/3) TaMHS project schools were invited to send two members of staff to attend a one day training session. Support was then provided to the schools through consultation with TaMHS EPs and free resources to assist the initial implementation of the programme. TaMHS EPs also offered to run parent workshops to inform parents about the programme.

On completion of the programme schools were asked by their link TaMHS EP to consider how / if the intervention would be built in to curriculum planning in future years.

9 TaMHS schools have sent staff on the1 day training programme. 6 TaMHS schools have completed 1 full implementation of the programme, 1 is still in the process of running the programme. So far, 2 schools have implemented FRIENDS as part of a whole class curriculum and 5 have delivered the programme to small groups of students. 6 of the 7 schools who have already worked with the programme have made provision to run FRIENDS again in 2010-2011 and to maintain it on an annual basis.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Extent of parent involvement

In 4 schools parents were invited to attend workshops where the FRIENDS programme would be introduced by a TaMHS EP and one of the members of staff who would be running the programme. Attendance at the sessions was poor, but feedback from parents who attended was positive. In three schools one introductory session was arranged. At School A, parents of 3 pupils attended, a secondary school (WPS) had parents for 5 pupils in attendance and the final primary school was supported by the attendance of parents of 3 pupils to the session. At School C (Hardwick) the EP ran 3 sessions, an introduction, a mid-way review and a final session including a presentation by the children. 3 parents attended the first session, 1 came to the middle session and 20 came to the final presentation.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Table 2 - FRIENDS in TaMHS Schools 2009-2010

School Received Run Method of Who delivered Is programme Training? programme? selection if programme? running again this Whole class or small group year? small group? (2010-2011)

FHJS Yes Whole class – N/A Teacher Yes A Year 5 providing PPA

cover for Class

Teacher

Croyland Yes 2 small groups Low scores HLTA from Yes B of 8 on EL nurture class

Checklist and and Parent

referral from Support Advisor

school staff

Hardwick Yes Whole Class – N/A Class Teacher Yes C Year 5

Weavers Yes Small groups Referral by HLTA (Higher Possibly, but with D from/subject Level Teaching a new name as

tutor and/or Assistant) there was pastoral staff confusion amongst staff and students thinking that it was an intervention to develop friendship skills

Barby Yes No

Abbey Yes Small groups Teacher Teaching Yes Junior selection Assistant who is

also Assistant

SENCO

Ashby Yes Small groups Teacher Learning Yes Fields selection Support

Assistant

WPS Yes Small groups, PASS data TAs 2 TAs ran a Yes Years 7 , 8 and and group each,

9 discussion they also

with Inclusion supported each

team and other and ran

Heads of the first small

Year group jointly

Ruskin Yes No

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009

– March 2011

Evaluation

As there is a broad evidence base indicating the proven benefits to students in reducing feelings of anxiety, we decided to explore the „skill building‟ elements of FRIENDS further. We used the Emotional Literacy (EL) Checklist before and after the FRIENDS programme to look for an increase in children‟s emotional literacy skills as a result of the intervention. The Emotional Literacy Checklist includes a pupil self-report checklist as well as a parent and teacher checklist for significant adults to provide their views regarding a young person‟s levels of emotional literacy. The teacher‟s and parent‟s ratings can be further analysed into sub-scale areas looking at „self-awareness‟, „self-regulation‟, „motivation‟, „empathy‟ and „social skills‟. Quantitative data is available for 4 Schools (Appendix 1).

Evaluation Results

Summary of Evaluation Results from Quantitative Data

Although varying types and amounts of data are available for analysis, overall the results indicate that the FRIENDS programme has a positive effect on pupils‟ development of Emotional Literacy (EL) Skills, as rated by the pupils themselves. In one school there was a significant improvement in pupil rated emotional literacy skills. The school (School A) ran the programme as a whole class intervention for a class with identified social, behavioural and emotional needs. Results showed that 14 out of the 19 pupils for whom a comparison was possible showed gains in their self-reported emotional literacy skills following the FRIENDS programme. Another school (School D) showed similar levels of progress but with smaller numbers of pupils, running small group sessions with 4 pupils. A third school ran slightly larger small group sessions and results also indicate a trend towards increased emotional literacy skills. In all three of the schools where pupil EL Checklists were completed (37 pupils altogether), 14 pupils (37%) moved up one clear category rating (where categories are identified as well below average, below average, average, above average, well above average) and 4 (10%) moved up two category ratings. Only 3 pupils dropped down category ratings, but 2 of the 3 jumped down two whole levels of category rating. It would therefore appear that FRIENDS is a helpful intervention to be run in both primary and secondary schools. At present the results suggest a more positive effect when the intervention is run as a whole class programme rather than a small group intervention package in primary schools.

Parents and teachers also perceive increases in emotional literacy skills with parents from one school (School B) identifying considerably more progress than school staff (a significant increase of 10.6 points in the average EL score given by parents following the FRIENDS programme compared to an increase of 2.3 points in the average EL score given by teachers to pupils following the intervention). In School B the 6 parents‟ checklists available for analysis indicated progress for every child who had completed the programme.

Where a control group was possible (School C), teachers perceived that pupils with a high level of need made progress with their emotional literacy skills in the FRIENDS group whereas emotional literacy skills were perceived to decrease for pupils with similar levels of need in the control group. There was statistically

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

significant difference in the scores given to pupils by teachers in the control and the intervention group.

Graph 1

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

A Line Graph to Show Differences in Average EL Scores Rated by Pupils Before and

After FRIENDS

School A School B School D

1 2

1= Pre 2 = Pos

Graph 2

76

74

72

70

68

66

64

62

60

58

56

A Line Graph to Show Average EL Scores Given by Parents to their Children Before

and After the FRIENDS programme

School B School C

1 2

1 = Pre 2 = Pos

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Graph 3

A Line Graph to Show Differences in Average EL Scores Given by School Staff to

Pupils Before and After the FRIENDS programme

56

54

52

50 School B School C

48

46

44

42 1 2

1 = Pre 2 = Pos

Summary of Evaluation Results from Qualitative Data

Two forms of qualitative data have been gathered. Firstly views of pupils have been sought through focus group discussions. Secondly, views of staff involved in delivering the programme have been gathered through completion of a qualitative assessment questionnaire.

The focus groups designed to gather pupil‟s views were led by an educational psychologist. They involved a small group of pupils who had completed the programme. The children were asked 8 questions to elicit their views. Table 3 displays their responses and any emerging themes to the 8 questions.

Table 3 – Focus Group responses indicating pupil’s views with regard to the FRIENDS for Life programme. Common responses are listed first with the number of comments made around that particular theme noted next to the response e.g. [3] = 3 responses within the theme.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Focus Group School C School A

Question Hardwick

FHJS

December 2010

Group consisted of 6 pupils – (4months after the end of the

programme).

3 boys and 3 girls

6 pupils – 3 boys and 3 girls

What has been Expressing / understanding Coping Step Plan [2]

fun, what have you our feelings [4] Moving the tables and sitting

enjoyed? e.g. “helping me have less where we wanted

temper – both at home and Being allowed to talk to

at school” friends Drawing

Colouring in [2] Learning how to calm down

Doing assembly Writing in the book like it was

Relaxation lessons a diary

You don‟t have to do so Thinking about your feelings much work Talking about feelings with

How the work encourages other people

you to get on with other Being able to say “I like my children brother”

Getting tips on roller-skating

The T shirt activity on p.46

What have you Better ways to cope with That I can use the coping

found out about problems [4] step plan for lots of things

yourself? e.g. “learning how to control e.g. getting braces [2]

ourselves more such as

That I‟m more of a confident

laughing at silly things and person than a lonely person

[2]

not getting angry / upset”, “if

I hate being angry

people be bad, we tell the

Ways to calm down that I still teacher”

use

That we have choices [2]

That I‟m more of a calm

person than an angry person Getting more confident and

That I am confident

laughing more [2]

We can be ourselves

We trust each other more

What has been Knowing how to reward The group felt the following

helpful – at ourselves when we have comments applied to both home

school? done something good [5] and school:

Calming down

To change our unhelpful thoughts

Not to stress out at someone

It helps to write down positive thoughts, writing it down helps you remember

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

[3]

More specifically at home, the

group commented:

I discuss my feelings more and fight less with my sister

I know how I feel and talk

To relax more to my brother at home

- at home? To walk away from my

brother when he annoys me

People are there for you

Has the When we lay down [2] I talk to people more [3]

programme helped Making more friends [2] I made new friends

you to understand Learn to accept that others Trust people

other people? don‟t like you Good to think about role „cause everyone different models

it was funny and useful Write it down if you‟re

help you in different ways worried about something You‟ll always have your friends

What mark out of Girls – 6 , 10 , 10 Girls – 10, 10, 10

10 would you give

Boys – 9, 9, 10 Boys – 10, 10 , 6

the programme for

how useful and

enjoyable you

found it Average = 9

What would have Moving around a bit more More drawing

made it better – We got bored and fidgeted More sharing with friends

one more up the sometimes More „calm down‟ activities

scale? A word search on „feelings‟ More time sent on it, so would be good lessons are not rushed

Monkey bully Do it again

Go back and fill in the missing bits from the book

More drama

More fun

Would you Yes [5] e.g. “ yes „cause Yes x6

recommend it to really fun”, “could make it for Year 5 is a good year to do it

others? everyone – every single It‟s brilliant – hope we can do

year” it again

Schools around the world should do it

It would be good for disabled people /people with problems

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

It would be good for everyone

Other comments? Carry on all the good work Our teacher was great and explained everything really well

Qualitative feedback was also gained through a structured interview in School B completed by an educational psychologist and the teaching assistant and parent support advisor who were in the process of running the FRIENDS programme. The interview took place before the programme had finished. In School C the programme was evaluated as part of preparation for a presentation regarding FRIENDS on the Northamptonshire TaMHS conferences in January 2011.

Numbers in brackets indicate the numbers of responses that identified the specific theme e.g. [2] would mean comments from two members of staff about the benefit

Strengths identified by staff include:

Easy to follow manual [2]

Easy to adapt to fit the needs of the class

Great activities that are easy to follow and enjoyable for the children.

The idea of „helpful‟ and „unhelpful‟ thoughts was main highlight for pupils (and

staff) in one school. It was useful beyond the session – e.g. girl who was not

looking forward to going fishing with her Dad, as last time, something bad had

happened at home, and so she was worried that something bad might happen

again. However, she decided that she needed to think about the things she would

be enjoying when fishing, which helped her.

Highlight was „Relaxation‟ [2], which has led to the introduction of Relax Kids to

the group from one school

Helpful to recap at beginning of next session by asking children to explain what

they learned last week, and how they might have used the learning at school or

at home – showing whether or not that they have learned the new knowledge and

skills and so build on this in the current session.

Children say that they use the learning at home.

Homework tasks were a real asset and strengthened the link with

parents Learning about what makes us stressed?

The football shirts activity was very popular, helping children to identify their own

support network in different situations

Learning with the children, sharing ideas with them and exploring new ways of

thinking / looking at things was very powerful and empowering

Short stories and the exercise of breaking down parts of a story into‟ thoughts‟

and‟ feelings‟.

Activities that involved moving.

Creative exercises.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Staff were also asked to comment on ways in which the programme could be

improved. They noted that:

It was helpful to be flexible with time allotted to sessions. Initial sessions

tended to take 1.5 – 2 hours, later sessions fitted into an hour – 1.5 hour

session.

It is important to allocate dedicated, uninterrupted time for the sessions

Some of the language in the workbook is inappropriate and was questioned

by pupils. E.g. page 37: “...let‟s find-out how silly this thought is”. Better to use

„unhelpful‟ otherwise children feel insulted for having similar thoughts.

In one school, staff felt that 1 pupil „outgrew‟ the programme and one was

put-off by amount of words in workbook.

In one school children found it hard to grasp and generate their own „Coping-

step plan‟ Time-pressure made this harder.

Homework tasks were hard to set and monitor for a small group, rather than a

whole class expectation.

In School C the class teacher commented on benefits she had noticed for the

children in her class. She found that children:

Were more resilient Applied their new learning through FRIENDS to difficult situations they were facing

Dealt with conflict and managed resolutions more appropriately Showed improved confidence Showed improved social skills

Overall, according to qualitative evaluation it would appear that pupils value the programme. They enjoy the sessions and learn helpful skills that they are able to transfer to real life situations. 11 out of 12 pupils who shared their views in focus groups would recommend the programme to others.

Teaching staff comment that the materials are easy to use and include a number of valuable sessions such as „helpful/unhelpful thoughts‟ and „relaxation‟. It has been helpful to recap learning at the beginning of each session and ensure sufficient, dedicated time is allowed for each session. One teacher found it particularly helpful to learn „alongside‟ her class and explore ideas thoroughly with them, sharing her own thoughts and feelings as appropriate. The teacher in School C wholeheartedly recommended the programme to colleagues and noted many benefits for her students.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Overall Impact Ratings for FRIENDS for LIFE

" Where 10 is very highly useful and 1 Overall Impact Ratings of FRIENDS for

is not at all useful, on a scale of 1-10, LIFE according to senior staff from 6

how useful do you think the following project schools

TaMHS interventions were/are: Average Median Mode Range

a)For children who are vulnerable to 7.7 7.5 8 6 to10

experiencing difficulties with Mental

Health or who are already experiencing

such difficulties

b) Overall to the school 6 6 6 3 to 9

Capacity Building

Within the Northamptonshire Educational Psychology Service a group of EPs are trained to be trainers in FRIENDS. To date 6 one day courses have been run and approximately 40 schools have accessed the training.

A TaMHS conference was held in January 2011 where a workshop was delivered to introduce FRIENDS to staff from new schools across Northamptonshire. Feedback from the workshop was very positive with many schools expressing an interest in implementing FRIENDS. A one day training event is scheduled for May 2011 to enable more schools to establish FRIENDS within their curriculum. Schools that have currently run the programme may be able to offer support as partner schools for the intervention and staff attending the one day training course will be offered a follow up session with an EP to plan the implementation of the intervention in their school.

Conclusion

The key lessons learned in the Northamptonshire TaMHS Project about FRIENDS to take forward include:-

Indications are that FRIENDS can be introduced successfully into Northamptonshire schools with a positive impact on children who are vulnerable to experiencing difficulties with Mental Health or who are already experiencing such difficulties, and to an extent on the school overall.

In particular, as well as the well-proven reduced feelings of anxiety, FRIENDS enables children to benefit in terms of improved emotional literacy skills and learning helpful skills that are able to transfer to real-life situations. Hence, arguably their mental health and resilience is improved. They enjoy and value the programme.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

Key aspects for making implementation of FRIENDS successful include: allocating dedicated time for sessions that are not over-ridden by other competing time demands; staff choosing from the menu to tasks carefully that suit their class and so make best use of time available; and implementing the programme with a whole class for maximum impact.

Capacity has been built for further implementation of FRIENDS in Northamptonshire schools, and the detailed results above need to be taken into account in implementation in schools.

Because of the indications of the importance to children‟s mental health of FRIENDS, that it has been included in the Building Blocks of Provision for Building Mentally Healthy Schools in Northamptonshire at the Wave 1 / Universal focus, as a recommended provision for all schools with a KS2/ or KS3, as shown below: -

Building-Blocks of Provision for Building

Mentally Healthy Schools in Northamptonshire As informed by

Northamptonshire

Targeted Mental Health in Schools

More Targeted

‘Drawing and Emotional Health / Home-Focused

Programmes or Support Talking’ Wellbeing Team – to Practitioner Trained in

support students in

ASD, 123 Magic, Solihull

- Wave 3 focused

KS1-4

KS3&4

Approach Parenting

Peer Support CBT based Group Support for child experiencing Targeted Programmes

KS1&2

Work e.g. Loss, Bereavement, or Support

Peer Mentoring ‘Growing Optimism’ Separation, ADHD, ASD, Self- - Wave 2 focused KS3&4 or ‘RESPECT’ harm & Domestic Abuse

Universal Programmes Building Resilience thru: Peer Massage Whole-School or Support- Wave 1

‘Zippy’s Friends’ KS1

or

Behaviour Management focused

‘FRIENDS’ KS2/3/4

Relaxation Techniques

Approach

Essential County PSHE Shoe Box Headteacher Staff Well- Solihull Solution Mental Health Parent

Prog inc SEAL. & Mental Wellbeing being Approach & Focused Team or Lead Engagement Foundation Healthy Schools Health Programme Programme or Protective Approach Person in – best Programmes Anti Bullying Handbook

Behaviours

School

Practice &

Tackling Stigma

Approaches

Children’s Workforce Core Competencies (from DCSF, ECM 2005)

May 2011

Essential Underpinnings for work with children

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

References

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Barrett, Farrell, Ollendick and Dadds (2006) „Long-term outcomes of an Australian

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FRIENDS programme: a cognitive behaviour therapy intervention to promote

emotional resilience‟. Published online by group.bmj.com. Archives of Disease in Childhood 90 pp 1016 - 1019

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Stallard, Simpson, Anderson, Hibbert and Osborn (2007) „The FRIENDS emotional

health programme: Initial findings from a school-based project‟ Child and Adolescent

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Wadell, Godderis, Hua, McEwan and Wong (2004) „Preventing and Treating Anxiety

Disorders in Children and Youth: A Research report prepared for the British

Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development‟. The University of British

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Weare, K (2011) „Promoting Mental Health and Wellbeing in Schools: An Evidence

Based Approach‟. A PowerPoint presentation given at the Northamptonshire TaMHS

conferences

World Health Organisation, (2004) „Prevention of Mental Disorders. Effective

Interventions and Policy Options. Summary Report‟.

This „FRIENDS for Life‟ chapter was authored by, Kathryn Davidson, Educational

Psychologist based in the Daventry/SW Area and edited by Mike Simons,

Specialist Senior Educational Psychologist and TaMHS Project Manager and

Programme Lead.

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011

For training opportunities re „FRIENDS for Life‟ and other interventions, please

see www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/tamhs

FRIENDS for Life Chapter in Northamptonshire TaMHS Project, Evaluation of Interventions April 2009 – March 2011