Positive Secondary School Transitions: Improving multi-agency working with school pupils identified as being at risk of making a poor transition

The nature of pupils experiences around their transition from primary to secondary school appears to play a particularly significant role in shaping their future educational trajectory, and wider wellbeing (Jindal-Snape et al., 2019). Research suggests that pupils assessed as having less academic ability and lower self-esteem are at greater risk of making a poor transition (West et al, 2010). Tobbell and ODonnell (2014) emphasise the ecological context, noting how pupils opinions of differences in school systems and culture are mediated through their changed relationships with teaching staff and peers. Young people undergo these physical moves between educational settings whilst negotiating with varying degrees of success the various developmental, inter-personal and socio-cultural challenges associated with adolescence (Erikson, 1963; Kehily, 2007). The literature also invites critical researchers to reflect on the influence of professional narratives and practices which categorise children and young people as being at risk or posing a risk to others within families, schools, and wider society (Featherstone et al 2017).

Working in collaboration with social innovation charity People Know Hows Positive Transition Service, this participatory research project (PAR) (Fine, 2010; Chevalier and Buckles, 2014) will engage proactively with young people, their family and relevant stakeholders to better understand and promote the needs of those pupils whose background or characteristics could place them at higher risk of experiencing a poor school transition in Edinburgh and East Lothian. In keeping with the progressive principles and priorities of People Know How and those methodologies which seek to include and empower service users, the design and direction of my research will be respectful and responsive to the lived realities of these pupils and their significant others. The project will also have a comparative aspect, studying how interventions differ between two contrasting local authorities, one a large urban setting and the other predominantly rural. This will allow the project to explore the way local context, organisational culture and interagency relationships influence the type and effectiveness of transition support. The findings of the project will inform the development of the Positive Transition Service and inform models of best practice for similar projects across the UK.