Progress and challenge in Nurture Groups: evidence from three case studies

Abstract

Nurture Groups have come to play a key role in the mainstream education of young children experiencing social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. In this article, Paul Cooper, Professor of Education, and Yonca Tiknaz, EdD Research Associate, both of the School of Education at the University of Leicester, explore the perceptions of mainstream and Nurture Group staff about the nature, purposes and impact of Nurture Group practice. Their analysis is based on data from three case studies, carried out in 2003, of Nurture Groups for pupils in Years 1 and 2 of their primary education. A key feature of this article is its focus on some of the challenges faced by apparently successful Nurture Groups in achieving a coherent and sustained form of intervention in the context of a whole-school approach. The authors show that mainstream and Nurture Group staff value Nurture Groups and see them as making a significant contribution to the progress of pupils, particularly in the areas of social and emotional development and behaviour. These findings are consistent with earlier studies. However, the lack of effective communication between Nurture Group staff and mainstream staff and difficulties over balance in Nurture Groups are highlighted as important factors that may, in some circumstances, inhibit educational progress. This paper helps to extend our understanding of some of the ‘opportunity costs’ and ‘opportunity gains’ that might be associated with the Nurture Group approach because of the temporary separation of children in Nurture Groups from mainstream schooling.