Deep Support for Social Justice

Every child and young person needs deep support to flourish, but some need more support than others.

“Deep Support for Social Justice” by Sue Williamson tackles key factors in achieving social justice in schools: mental health and wellbeing; parental engagement; careers information, advice and guidance; and mentoring and coaching.

In each area, Williamson provides evidence of the vital role in enabling all young people to flourish, and how it can be achieved, with examples. Only then can our education system support social justice, and counter the tendency for social disadvantage to prevent people from achieving their potential.

Specific recommendations include:

• Schools must be committed to collaboration. Schools should take responsibility for all children and young people in their locality.
• For successful teaching and learning, teachers must have deep knowledge of the young people.
• Schools need to be clear on what data is required and how it will be used in the interests of all their young people.
• Parents/carers need to be welcomed into schools as partners in their children’s schooling.
• Children in different localities will experience different barriers to learning; their schools should target resources as appropriate.
• Partnerships with other schools, charities, local community and employers need managing to share expertise.
• Government must focus on the big issues, eg: eradicating child poverty; ensuring public services are joined up; allocating resources and ensuring value for money; agreeing on a better balanced accountability system. And it is essential to restore funding for Youth Services.

“Deep Support for Social Justice” is a publication by SSAT (Schools, Students, and Teachers Network), an organisation dedicated to improving outcomes for young people. With a focus on school improvement and innovation, SSAT collaborates with schools and academies in the UK and internationally.