COVO Connecting Voices to provide transition training for children in South East London Schools

COVO Connecting Voices is a Southwark based charity who specialise in training for young people with behavioural and emotional difficulties. COVO has been appointed to deliver transition training to 24 students. This will begin in February 2016 in two South East London inner city schools. Their programme will reduce the stress and anxiety children feel when moving from primary to secondary education and give their worries and concerns a voice.

COVO have developed a transition program to address the needs of children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and their parents. These children often struggle with change and it can take them longer to settle in and develop trust in new environments.The move from primary to secondary school can be a worrying time and a cause of stress and anxiety for families.COVO not only gives these worries and concerns a voice but provides practical strategies for dealing with this change.

The program moves step by step through identifying the concerns of the children and parents involved in transition and goes on to address self-esteem, friendship, behaviour and learning based issues.

The program also looks at what type of scenarios the children will face.It uses group work, role play, movement and reflection to develop confidence and resilience.These are skills which will be needed to face the challenge of transitioning.It will allow the children to see their next step as a new adventure.

COVO will also run sessions with parents. They will be giving out some exercises to work on together to create a strong child-parent relationship through transition and beyond.

COVO will deliver these programs to 24 students in two South East London inner city primary schools, Lucas Vale and Grimlin Gibbons.These programs will begin in February, one day a week, running until June. The two schools are both two-form entry schools with multi ethnic children across the social spectrum but with a high percentage of free school meals.

“This particular COVO training, it's all about preparing the children for secondary school, making sure that secondary school is going to be a place where they feel they can carry on the good stuff they will be taking with them from their time with us.”

David Tomlinson, Deputy Head, Goodrich Primary School – previous transition program customer.

COVO's website can be found here:http://www.covo.org.uk/