In the first of a four-part series exploring Supporting Education Group’s broad impact, Viv Trask-Hall confirms the meaningful difference Thrive is making on pupil exclusions and absence rates.
Sammy’s story
Sammy, (not his real name), a Year 10 student at Meridian High School in Croydon, has been on quite a journey over the past four years.
More than 130 defiance incidents were recorded against Sammy during Year 7, when he was subject to a fixed-term exclusion and removed from the classroom 112 times, with 67 internal exclusions.
In the assessment of Jayne Curd, Meridian’s senior behaviour lead, it was clear that Sammy was fighting some very serious personal battles.
A permanent exclusion would have been the likely next step, but Meridian chose a different path. Teachers recognised that Sammy had a deep need for emotional wellbeing support and introduced him to Supporting Education Group’s Thrive Approach – an intervention that, through teacher training, resources and an award-winning online tool, helps to improve the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people.
The impact on Sammy has been nothing short of transformational, with a significant increase in positive behaviours and a huge reduction in negative incidents. He was also successful in his application to become an ambassador, helping other students to understand and benefit from the emotional wellbeing support that is helping to turn his life around.
Stories such as Sammy’s demonstrate the effectiveness of the Thrive Approach – impact which has now been evaluated on a large scale by ImpactEd Group.
The impact of the Thrive Approach
Data from two studies, one involving a sample of over 1,700 schools, found measurable benefits of Thrive’s interventions versus national comparators. The initial findings showed that schools using Thrive had 27% fewer exclusions than the national average and 15% lower severe absence rates. Staff wellbeing had also improved. Thrive’s success is featured in Supporting Education Group’s latest impact report, which analyses our impact across four mission areas:
• Providing great teachers and support staff wherever they are needed
• Developing and inspiring an education workforce who thrive in the sector
• Improving outcomes for disadvantaged children and those with special needs
• Helping schools to run smoothly so they can focus on what’s important.
At Meridian High School, the use of the Thrive Approach has resulted in overall student absence improving by more than 17% in 2023-24, with persistent absence down by 15%. Positive behaviour has also seen a substantial increase, with an average rise of 56 points per student.
When it comes to an assessment of the difference Thrive has made at Meridian High, Jayne Curd says it best: “Thrive has played a major role in this transformation by helping us create a school that students want to come to and where staff are happy. It is central to our behaviour and wellbeing policy and is integral to our culture.”
Jayne Curd of Meridian High School in Croydon has written about her school’s experiences of using Thrive to improve behaviour and reduce absenteeism in Schools Week.