The impact of a nurture group on an infant school: a longitudinal case study.

Nurture groups have been in existence since the late 1960s and interest in their therapeutic and educational approach has persisted to the present day. Citations of their effectiveness have appeared in government documentation since the Warnock Report of 1978 and they continue to be an area of interest to both researchers and practitioners in educational journals. I had the opportunity to establish a full time nurture group in a school that had a turbulent history in an area of socio-economic deprivation. Despite its rural setting, the school had all the issues facing some of the toughest inner city environments. This thesis is the culmination of an in-depth longitudinal case study looking at the nurture group and its impact on the evolution of the school. Whilst there is a gradual increase in publications in this field, a search at the time of writing this thesis indicated that no other studies replicate the nature of this one. As part of the research process I was able to design a reintegration readiness scale and social development curriculum as well as guide the evolution to a nurturing school, publishing these and other articles in peer-reviewed journals, further adding to the current interest in the field. Being immersed in the nurture group and school for a four year period provided me with a unique opportunity as a reflective practitioner, researcher and participant observer to document the impact of the nurture group, including its potential influence on the reduction of exclusion figures, the professional development of the staff team and support the identification of a broader range of social, emotional and behavioural difficulties