Guidelines for Youthreach and Community Training Centres on using the Guidance, Counselling and Psychological Services fund

Place

Date 2013

Outline of dayMorning: Introductions Current supports in centres GC&PS guidelines SENI research study Care teams

Afternoon: RACE

Guidance, Counselling and Psychological Services provision Introduced in 1998 Managed by VECs Based on per capita allocation Mostly used for counselling learners Exceptions

Dublin psychological services Guidance Mentoring Etc

See reports on Youthreach.ie/webwheel

Context of Youthreach – a learner-centred programme The key characteristics of the Youthreach programme

o are about the experiencing of respectful and supportive relationships,

o the learning of pro-social behaviours, o the development of confidence, resilience and autonomy and o the acquisition of a range of life skills and competencies o in both group and one-to-one contexts and o in ways that are pragmatic, learner-led, relevant, challenging and

imaginative Contribution of G,C&PS provision

to increase the capacity of centres to be creative and flexible in their responses

Tailoring provision by clarifying needs.

Information and advice giving

Key working Mentoring Frontline guidance

Guidance Counselling Psychotherapy Psychological

assessment Referral to services

outside centre

Continuum of measures

Continuum of support

Level of formal skill needed

Informal / non-formal supports

Whole-centre approach Culture and ethos of centre Staff

Acceptance and curiosity Awareness and knowledge

Key working Mentoring Inter-agency liaison

Formal supports Counselling Psychotherapy Non-verbal therapies, e.g.

Music / drumming Drama / story-telling Art Dance Touch / massage

Specialist services (outside centre) Psychiatric Addiction Child welfare

Developmental continuum

Induction & Foundation Progression Transitionengagement (engagement (personal (addressing (guidance& relationship & social barriers) & liaison)building) dev.)

Specific support options Induction SPHE Critical incident planning Key working Support after transition Inter-agency liaison

Mentoring

To allow these to happen safely:

Time for planning and review

Care team

Formal case super-vision & staff support

Specific support options

Delivery of personal and social development programmes

Formal guidance Counselling Therapy Group therapy

To allow these to happen safely

Practitioners Have formal

qualifications Are members of their

professional body

SEN Initiative research project Model of support in SEN Initiative Previous evaluations Comparative study Logic model categories used (activities, outputs /

structural changes, outcomes)

Matching centres

by centre size

Centre size SENI centres

Non-SENI centres

Small 2 2

Medium 8 9

Large 7 6

Very large 3 3

Total places 710 706

by centre location

Centre location SENI centres

Non-SENI centres

Village or small town 5 5

Mid-sized town 6 6

Large town  2 3

City (urban/suburban) 7 6Total population 1,587,500 1,483,500

Support interventionsFor how many of the learners who attended your centre for any part of the last academic year were the following measures put in place:  

No. of SENI learners

% age of SENI learners

No. of non-SENI learners

% age of non-SENI learners

Provision of regular key working sessions (at least one a term)

45 5% 474 48%

Provision of regular mentoring session using the WebWheel process (at least one a fortnight)

791 92% 0 0%

Development of an individual action plan for/with the learner

834 97% 681 69%

Inter-agency work

  No. of agencies By SENI centres

Mean for SENI centres

By non-SENI centres

Mean for non-SENI centres

Number of local services and agencies with whom centre staff liaised for information and advice and/or with whom collaborative actions were put in place for particular learners

487

 

24 143 7

No. of learners  In SENI centres

%age in SENI centres

In non-SENI centres

%age in non-SENI centres

Number of learners on whose behalf the centre engaged in inter-agency work

570 67% 314 32%

Outcomes

 Retention SENI centre total nos.

 % ages Non-SENI centre total nos.

% ages

Number of learner places in centre

710 100% 706 100%

Total no. of learners who attended for any part of the year

857 121% 989 140%

Outcomes Benefit from participation in the Youthreach programme

SENI mean % age

Non-SENI mean % age

1. Benefited significantly from their participation in the Youthreach programme

85% 83%

2. Did not benefit to any significant extent from their participation

10% 12%

Certification outcomesCertification % age of SENI

learners % age of non-SENI learners

Junior Cert (partial/Year 1) 0.1% 0.2%Junior Cert (full) 2.7% 1.1%Leaving Cert Applied (partial / Year 1) 6.2% 0.8%Leaving Cert Applied (full) 6.0% 9.1%General Leaving Cert (partial/Year 1) 1.4%  General Leaving Cert (full) 2.7% 1.9%FETAC Major

awardMinor award

Major award

Minor award

FETAC level 1        FETAC level 2 2.1%     1.5%FETAC level 3 8.8% 21.6% 3.1% 19.7%FETAC level 4 8.9% 18.6% 6.0% 11.5%FETAC level 5   5.7% 1.5% 0.9%Percentage receiving any kind of formal academic certification

84.6%

57.4%

ECDL (full) 1.5% 1.9%

Competency outcomes i. The development of basic skills SENI Non-

SENI

1. Acquired literacy and numeracy skills 77% 34%

2. Acquired information and communication technology skills

83% 60%

3. Were effective in the use of oral communication skills 76% 46%

4. Were able to apply processing skills when studying (e.g. attention, memory)

62% 37%

 ii. The development of life skills SENI Non-SENI

1. Showed practical knowledge and skills in relation to accessing public facilities and services (e.g. sourcing information, filling in forms)

69% 50%

2. Presented appropriately (e.g. in terms of practical competence, reliability, appearance, etc)

64% 43%

3. Showed knowledge and understanding of the world outside the locality

60% 31%

4. Engaged in the world (e.g. participating in community events, travelling outside the locality)

58% 31%

5. Managed money effectively (e.g. budgeting, planning, saving) 47% 33%

6. Were at ease eating in public (both inside and outside the centre) 73% 62%

7. Were able to play and have fun with others (e.g. joke, tease, enjoy recreational activities)

80% 63%

 iii. The acquisition of formal accreditation in academic and vocational subjects

SENI Non-SENI

1. Achieved accreditation in formal study areas whether academic or vocational

68% 54%

2. Showed motivation to learn and made real progress in understanding and study skills

71% 28%

3. Showed academic ambition and an interest in progressing to further education or training after they leave the centre

61% 25%

 iv. The acquisition of vocational skills SENI Non-SENI

1. Gained practical skills in useful but non-formal vocational skill areas

72% 63%

2. Achieved non-formal or informal accreditation in:a. Driving, safe pass, computer skills, First Aid, etc 

 55%

 36%

b. Music, sound technology, drama, performance, etc 52% 41%c. Art, design, photography, film, graphics, etc  30% 18%d. Gaisce, Failte Ireland, Enterprise, etc  19% 9%e. Sports, fitness, outdoor pursuits, etc  73% 55%f. SPHE, sexual health, life skills, Copping On, etc  73% 59%

3. Gained practical skills in vocational subjects   77% 48%

v. Development of effectiveness in work and learning settings (e.g. study skills, time management, working with people) 

SENI Non-SENI

1. Behaved appropriately in context 74% 50%

2. Participated in and engaged with learning experiences 81% 58%3. Successfully completed work experience placement(s)  60% 48%

4. Developed a personal career path plan (e.g. in relation to work, further education or family life) 

67% 42%

5. Showed a willingness to take responsibility for tasks  69% 40%

6. Were able to work on their own initiative  64% 33%7. Were able to work as part of a team  73% 49%

8. Were able to cope with complex situations and make reasonable judgements in them 

63% 25%

 vi. Socio-emotional development (i.e. ability to manage emotions and relationships)

SENI Non-SENI

1. Were able to manage negative feelings and express them appropriately

77% 28%

2. Showed self-regulation 58% 33%

3. Showed self-awareness 67% 31%

4. Showed skill at interacting with others 71% 46%

5. Showed understanding and consideration for others 65% 38%6. Were assertive and confident when dealing with conflict and showed a willingness to employ problem-solving approaches

53% 20%

vii. Resilience and mental health (including confidence and self-esteem)

SENI Non-SENI

1. Showed happiness or contentment 63% 41%

2. Showed self-esteem and confidence 60% 40%

3. Were able to cope with their circumstances 65% 47%

4. Were open to new experiences 73% 40%

 viii. Ability to acknowledge difficulties and to seek out and benefit from available support services within and outside the centre

SENI Non-SENI

1. Were able to acknowledge their difficulties to themselves

72% 31%

2. Were aware of available supports inside and outside the centre

82% 56%

3. Were willing to accept suitable help when it was offered

72% 37%

4. Were pro-active about seeking support when they felt they needed it

59% 19%

Progression outcomesOf the total no. of learners who attended the centre for any part of the 12 month period, how many

No. of SENIlearners

% age of SENI learners

No. of non-SENIlearners

% age of non-SENI learners

1. Returned after the summer 480 56% 443 45%

2. Progressed successfully to further training 131 15% 111 11%

3. Progressed successfully to employment 41 5% 57 6%

4. Completed the programme but have not yet progressed to further training or employment

56 7% 130 13%

5. Left the centre for a practical reason like moving away, having a baby, going to prison

61 7% 68 7%

6. Dropped out of the centre by their own choice

63 7% 136 14%

7. Left as a result of being asked to leave by the board of management / VEC

45 5% 32 3%

Care teams

Care teams provide

Indirect support to learners Support staff to support learners Share expertise Share responsibility

1. Description (setting the scene):

What is happening?

One person describes a a learnera group of learners a situation

that is causing them concern.

2. Exploration (digger deeper):

How it is happening, patterns and other similar experiences

The other members of the team add their own observations about the problem, noting any positive or mitigating aspects as well as negative ones.

3. Theory generation (why):

The personal or social context and possible reasons for why it might be happening

The members of the team outline their ideas or theories about why the problem is occurring.

4. Brainstorming (what could we do?):

Identifying possible actions

The team quickly lists as many interventions as they can think of. All suggestions are accepted and written down without comment or argument until the team runs out of ideas.

5. Making a plan (what will we do)

Discussing which ideas will be tried out in a

plan of action

The team then discusses the options and

choose those which appear to be the most

useful for now. This first plan is for a relatively

short period (e.g. two weeks or a month)

6. Review (how did it go):

New information, what worked and development of a refined plan

What was learned from the plan to date and what changes need to be introduced to improve the plan. A new review date is set (usually some time away).

Practical considerations Membership of team Timetabling to happen on a regular basis Focus is care rather than discipline Managing the process rather than the

content – who will facilitate? Maintenance of confidentiality within and

outside the team Keeping a record

The team as a resource

Drawing on range of experiences and perspectives – going round the group for stages 2 – 5

Increasing opportunities for innovative and creative responses

Sharing of expertise and opportunity for learning