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School Resources: Bridging The Gap

20th November 2024 News

Bridging The Gap: A project to support adopted children in schools.

For many adopted children, school can feel challenging. The regional adoption agency Adopt London South is working with SEND practitioners, teachers, and school staff across ten South London Local Authorities and have launched a new resource to help them to understand what adopted students of all ages experience every day. This initiative aims to build compassion and understanding within schools so that adopted students feel heard, valued, and supported.

Recognising the Challenges

Adopted children can face unique difficulties in school that impact their learning and relationships. Many feel emotionally overwhelmed, struggle with concentration, or find it hard to make friends. Sometimes, these challenges are misunderstood as behavioural issues, when in reality, these children may need extra support, patience and more importantly, their behaviours being understood from a different lens and perspective. By listening to their voices, schools can better understand and address their emotional and educational needs.

 

The Project’s Purpose and Approach

This co-design project set out to amplify the voices of South London’s adopted students. Adopt London South met with children and young people who attend a support group called ‘The Adoptables’. These children aged 8-16 shared their experiences of education and helped to summarise key messages that came up frequently for children of all ages.

By gathering and sharing their personal insights and experiences, Adopt London South has worked alongside adopted students to create a poster that highlights the most common challenges adopted students face. This poster is intended to be a starting point for discussions in schools, to help foster greater understanding and to enable schools to adopt simple strategies to better support opportunities. The goal is to help schools create a trauma-informed and nurturing environment for adopted students.

How Schools Can Make a Difference

With the insights gathered from these students, this project aims to change how adopted students are understood and supported in schools. We hope teachers will become proactive allies, creating caring spaces where adopted children feel comfortable and able to thrive. In the long term, we hope more schools will explore adoption support services and invest in trauma-informed and therapeutic training for teachers. As one of the project leaders, Tracey Ogleton, said;

  “It’s not rocket science—it’s about small changes, compassion, and understanding that can make all the difference. By listening to the voices of adopted students, schools can create an environment where every student feels seen, heard, and empowered to succeed.”

You are invited to download the project posters How we experience school ALS and What we want teachers to know ALS and to use and share these in any educational setting. Adopt London South hope that by working together we can help make schools supportive spaces for all.

If you would like any further information about the project in the first instance please contact [email protected]

 

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