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Description

The difficulties facing looked after children in keeping up with their peers educational attainment are well known. The ECM agenda has prioritised a transformation of this under-performance and this programme considers how one primary, Brackenhill Primary School in Bradford, tackles the challenges involved. The programme focuses on two sisters who have had a deeply troubled and unsettled upbringing. One of the girls was unwilling to speak on admission to the school and both had moved home many times. Teachers and support staff explain how their strategies almost always begin not in the classroom but in areas which are designed to increase the child's feelings of security and emotional well-being.The programme shows how encouraging friendship networks and increasing self-esteem can lead not only to a happier child but one who is much more willing to learn.The programme also looks at how support staff concentrate on providing one-to-one support for underperforming looked after children.