Partnership and multi-agency working: Community partnership mapping tool
PDF file: Community partnership mapping tool (3.9 MB) - The various layers of partnerships that should be mapped to begin creating a holistic approach.
All stakeholders in education are needed to support attendance, ensuring a joined-up approach. This community partnership mapping tool has been developed to assist practitioners with identifying the multiple layers of a child or young person’s community. It can help identify who are the people and partners in their lives that can contribute to inclusive solutions. While utilising an equalities based learner centred approach it aids understanding in the complex, contextualised and interconnected issues within attendance and how meaningful partnerships can support with them.
A text based summary of this tool is detailed below.
What this tool can do (output)
Helps schools identify who their community partners are for individual pupils presenting with attendance difficulties.
What does it change? (outcome)
Increases confidence in identifying, understanding and collaborating with local partners to implement approaches, while improving the understanding of the underlying causes of non-attendance.
Pupil characteristics
Identify the individual attributes of a child or young person that need to be understood before any work can begin including current challenges they face and any equalities barriers. Information should include gender, siblings, language spoken at home, caring responsibilities, ethnicity and neighbourhood.
Pupils and their families
Identify the family and other significant relationships of importance to the pupil (i.e. friendships as well as extended family). Those significant people would be mum, step-dad, step brother, parental-grandparent, uncle, family friend, trusted neighbour, best friend, peer groups, friendship connections, geographical and online communities.
School networks
Identify and develop the school supports that are needed and can be accessed to implement approaches to improve attendance, including partner organisations and other opportunities. Those that would be part of this network include pupil support teachers, teachers with good relationships, breakfast club, home school link worker, CLD youth or family workers, peer mentors, campus police officer, SDS worker, social work etc.
Multi-agency support
Develop and strengthen your partnerships. Partners can offer support to the pupil or their family, including CLD services, family learning practitioners, community groups, locaI charities, neighbourhood based organisations, counselling services, specialised organisations e.g.
drugs/alcohol information, food and clothing banks. Seek to actively involve partners in how you plan and evaluate your attendance support.
Community context
Create and develop partnership links. Various partners can offer support to the pupil or their family, including CLD (Community Learning & Development) services, family learning practitioners, community groups, local charities, neighbourhood based organisations, counselling services, specialised organisations e.g. drugs/alcohol information, food and clothing banks. Parity with these partners must always be core to the support that is provided.
Take time to understand the needs of the communities that
children and their families live in. Utilise local and nationaI policies to develop our attendance outcomes. These should include attendance policies, GIRFEC procedures, National Improvement Framework, Local authority stretch aims, CLD plan, Local Outcome Improvement Plans, SIMD information, local health data, community safety data.
- What can our partners offer/provide that will support our vision for attendance?
- Are we involving all of the right partners to support attendance in our school?
- Thinking of the pupils we are supporting with attendance, what do you already know about their needs? To what extent are their needs being met holistically? Who else should be involved to support their attendance needs?
- What processes and resources do we need to put in place to support attendance?
- How can we address or mitigate barriers to participation to ensure equity and support the pupils that need it most?
- How are we ensuring we have supported any challenges in relation to any equalities area, including anti-racim, LGBTI+, mental health and wellbeing and gender?
