Interrogating the relationship between poverty, attainment and mental health and wellbeing: the importance of social networks and support – a Scottish case study

Abstract

The poverty-related attainment gap is an internationally recognised problem. It resides within a culture of performativity in which international comparators, underpinned by neo-liberal ideology, drive national policy. This conceptual paper interrogates the relationship between poverty, attainment and children's mental health and wellbeing to inform public policy and practice in Scotland and beyond. A key theme identified from the analysis of the literature is the nature, quality and strength of social and support networks around schools, families and children. This is contextualised within a discussion of the nature of childhood poverty and mental health in children in Scotland and the response of the Scottish Government. A focus on educational policy and schools alone will not in itself address the poverty-related attainment gap. What is required is an holistic focus on public policy, informed by interdisciplinary research, and a focus on building a strong infrastructure of support around schools, families and communities.

Establishing the Medium- to Long-Term Impact of Covid-19 Constraints on the Socio-Emotional Well-Being of Impoverished Children and Young People (and Those Who Are Otherwise Disadvantaged) during, and in the Aftermath of, Covid-19

“…These findings are consistent with the findings from a literature-based study focusing on the relationship between poverty, attainment and mental health and wellbeing in which the nature, quality and strength of networks of support around communities, families and schools, related, but not restricted, to social capital emerged as a key mediating variable (Mowat 2019a;Mowat 2020).…”

“…Amidst the increasing concerns about the mental health and wellbeing of CYP in general (Mowat 2019a;Inchley, Mokogwu, Mabelis et al 2020;Mowat 2020) It is recognized that a poor transition can impact negatively on CYP's socioemotional development and educational outcomes (White 2020) but no opportunity presented to prepare CYP for the unprecedented changes in their lives and the loss of the rites of passage associated with them (Orben, Tomova and Blakemore 2020), the lack of which may lead to a sense of loss.…”

“…The loss of familiar routines associated with school -a coping mechanism for many CYP with mental health issues and on the autistic spectrum -creates anxiety and distress (Lee 2020;Scottish Government 2020a). This is compounded by a lack of access to mental health supports in schools and mental health services (Armitage and Nellums 2020) which, in Scotland, were under strain and inadequate even prior to the pandemic (Murphy 2016;Mowat 2019a;Mowat 2020). Key global initiatives, such as the WHO Health Promoting Schools, had not had the desired effect in In keeping with these findings, the newly formed UK Trauma council identify the key issues as being the increased risk of exposure to trauma during the pandemic; the likelihood that those who have previously been exposed to trauma will experience particular difficulties, struggling to adapt to the lockdown environment with less recourse to normal supports; and the disruption to services which would normally support CYP who have experienced or are experiencing trauma (UK Trauma Council 2020).…”

Is there a place for place in educational attainment policy?

“…Schools are context-derived in the sense that their everyday operations are affected by their embeddedness in particular places. This includes the influence of a preponderance of families that have a lack of income to pay for extra-curricular activities and with whom schools find it harder to engage (Mowat, 2020). Research shows that a local concentration of students from disadvantaged backgrounds exerts a downward pressure on the quality of school experiences (Levin, 2007), partly because children suffer more insecurity and stress (Archer et al, 2010) and have less sense of belonging to the school community (OECD, 2017).…”

“…This has common ground with Mowat's arguments about what it will really take to 'close the gap'. She argues for 'system leadership', including inter-school collaboration and shifting the emphasis from 'in-school' improvement towards 'between-' and 'beyond-school' improvement (Mowat, 2019b) and for strengthening networks between schools and their communities (Mowat, 2020). Indeed, learning programmes for school leaders promoted by Education Scotland (2020) emphasise working with communities to maximise positive educational outcomes.…”