Schools that have developed clear admission procedures for new arrivals who arrive at different times of the year are well placed to identify their needs and ensure that they receive appropriate support to access the curriculum.

The key challenge for schools is to provide a welcome for all new arrivals that:

• forges good communication with parents and carers
• addresses immediate needs efficiently
• identifies the pastoral and educational needs of individual pupils
• promotes genuine inclusion
• contributes to success in learning.

The pathway to learning for new arrivals starts with the admission process.

DCSF and Ofsted guidance recommends that schools:

• do not delay in admitting pupils to school
• provide a welcoming environment and are positive about the arrival of asylum-seeking pupils
• have good background information on the linguistic, educational and cultural needs of new arrivals
• communicate with parents as an integral part of welcome and induction
• inform new arrivals and their families about the education system and entitlements such as free school meals
• use staff effectively, including staff funded by the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant, mentors, assistants and home/school liaison staff, in the admission process
• provide peer support. The 'Peer support' area of this site has guidance on this
• provide extra educational and family learning opportunities. The 'Family learning' area of this site has further guidance on this.

Creating a welcoming environment

From the first point of contact it is important that pupils and families are made to feel welcome. Schools and teachers can alleviate the anxieties of new pupils and their families by:

• making reception areas comfortable and welcoming
• providing information about the school and the curriculum in different languages. The 'Interpreting and translation' area of this site provides further guidance on this
• explaining to parents and carers the school’s commitment both to partnership and communication and to the well-being and success of all pupils. The 'Effective home–school liaison' area of the site gives some guidance on improving communication with parents
• involving other pupils in their welcome. The 'Peer support' area of this site gives guidance on this.

Gathering and recording information

Schools are rarely able to collect information from the previous schools of newly arrived pupils from overseas. This makes good communication with parents and carers very important.

Pupils from overseas may have had a range of educational experiences including formal education in their home country, a disrupted education or no previous school experience at all. Some children may have missed immunisation programmes or may have had no access to proper healthcare for long periods.

With a good understanding of a pupil's background and current family situation and their educational and developmental history, schools are better placed to plan for and meet their individual needs.

Establishing clear admission procedures

Effective induction into the curriculum that ensures progression and engagement begins at the start of the admission process.

Schools might want to ensure that:

• they collect appropriate information, including information needed to plan each pupil’s access to the curriculum. This will include information about a pupil’s country of origin, previous educational experience, language, experiences of interrupted education, religious practices, medical history, other agency involvement and parental levels of literacy
• information is disseminated to appropriate staff, including the school nurse
• parental, pupil and school expectations are properly shared and discussed
• key staff are available to parents and carers on days that admission interviews take place, and proper information sharing takes place
• families are helped to apply for free school meals, uniform and travel grants if appropriate, and are informed about agencies and community networks in the area
• teachers have time to plan for the welcome and integration of each new pupil before they arrive in class
• extra support is given across the curriculum to the settling in of pupils causing concern.

Admission procedures in the classroom will support rapid access to the curriculum and build on whole-school practice. This might include teachers:

• becoming familiar with the pronunciation of the pupil's name, the pupil's first language and cultural background and identifying other pupils in the class who share this
• preparing equipment and learning groups to ensure welcome, support and inclusion in learning activities
• involving teaching assistants and other support staff as appropriate in the planning for the new pupil’s inclusion
• informing pupils and identifying peers to befriend and help the new pupil
• providing explicit and consistent routines
• making sure each new arrival has access to different social groupings, feels safe, and that there are clear and enforced procedures against bullying and racism
• regularly checking on the pupil’s well-being after break and lunch times
• gaining good knowledge about what new arrivals know, and any gaps they have in their learning. The 'Initial assessment' and 'Assessment for learning' areas of this site have guidance on this
• accessing information gained at interview and at any initial assessment activity and modifying teaching to meet the pupil’s needs. 'Modifying and adapting the curriculum' gives guidance on this
• obtaining resources to support access and welcome. A variety of strategies to support the access of new arrivals who are new to English are suggested in the 'English as an additional language' area of this site
• establishing a role as listener, with opportunities for autobiographical talk, drawing and writing
• having high expectations of pupils, and clear systems of targeting, tracking and monitoring progress of individual pupils
• setting short-term targets for settling in and achievement
• monitoring attendance and referring any concerns promptly
• reviewing progress with the pupil, key staff and parents or carers after the first few weeks
• constructing learning environments with a wide range of activities that complement a variety of learning styles. The 'Planning for inclusion' area of this site has guidance on this
• developing the curriculum to acknowledge and enhance awareness about diversity. The 'Culturally diverse and inclusive curriculum' area of this site has guidance on this.

Case studies

Effective admission and induction procedures: primary

Effective admission and induction procedures: secondary

These case studies demonstrate how two schools have developed procedures to ensure good communication with new arrivals and their carers, and effective interventions by staff to support the settling in of more vulnerable pupils.

Useful weblinks

Please note: QCA is not responsible for the content of external sites

NAEP website
The website offers guidance, provides answers to frequently asked questions and provides links to other useful websites. The guidance can be downloaded from the website.

NAEP guidance
This document for primary and secondary schools aims to support schools in developing their provision for newly arrived pupils; whole school planning, welcoming, initial assessments, teaching and learning strategies and promoting children’s participation.

Welcoming new arrivals section includes:

• Initial information sharing
• Planning for the new arrivals
• Early communication with children new to English
• Buddies and designated adults
• Creating a welcoming environment

NAEP resources
New Arrivals Excellence Programme: DVD and case studies - a resource to support the development of induction procedures for new arrivals. The DVD is available on request.

DCSF: Managing Pupil Mobility: A handbook for induction mentors
This handbook has a useful toolkit for schools wishing to develop the role of support staff in assisting the integration and achievement of new arrivals. Guidance includes:

The role of the induction mentor

Understanding the needs of pupils

Admission to induction

Successful interviews

Gathering pupil information

Accessing support for pupils

Enabling mobile pupils to achieve - working with teachers and pupils

Exit procedures

DCSF: KS3 Ensuring the attainment of mobile pupils

This publication has several aims, including: to assess the current impact of home–school partnerships and to improve the initial assessment of mobile pupils in all subjects.

The materials are split into 6 sessions, each with their own goals and topics surrounding the needs of mobile students. There is also a glossary of terms and a materials evaluation sheet, so users can give their feedback on this publication.

DCSF: Managing pupil mobility: guidance

This booklet can be downloaded from the School improvement and excellence area of the DCSF Standards site. It includes case study examples of good practice with effective admission procedures and support strategies.

DCSF: Global Gateway
The Global Gateway is an international website which enables people involved in education across the world to engage in creative partnerships. It will help ensure that education crosses national boundaries and that young people become truly global citizens.

The Global Gateway is being developed by the British Council on behalf of the DCSF, and is for everyone involved in education.

The website provides information on:

• best practice in international projects and curriculum partnerships
• professional development for teachers, school leaders and educational authorities
• partner linking
• live expert advice online
• education news about international activities
• customisation of registered users' homepage
• news on educational topics that have an international dimension.

DCSF: Managing pupil mobility: a handbook for induction mentors
This handbook can be downloaded from the School improvement and excellence area of the DfES Standards site. It includes a useful toolkit for schools wishing to develop the role of support staff in assisting the integration and achievement of new arrivals. Guidance on admission procedures is presented in detail in section 3.0 of the handbook.

National Strategies: Supporting pupils learning English as an additional language: Revised edition

The guidance in this file is intended to support schools with the development of strategies to promote inclusive teaching and to raise the attainment of pupils learning EAL. Module 5 deals specifically with New arrivals and isolated learners.

Aiming High: Meeting the needs of newly arrived learners of EAL (2005)

These materials aim to support schools who may be working with newly arrived isolated learners of English as an additional language in settings which may have little or no access to expert Ethnic Minority Achievement (EMA) support. The materials aim to provide some practical ideas.

Ofsted: The education of asylum-seeker pupils
For this report, Ofsted surveyed 37 schools in 11 LAs to evaluate the impact of the arrival of pupils from asylum-seeker families. It includes a chapter on welcome, admission and induction.

Portsmouth Ethnic Minority Achievement Service (EMAS)
The 'Asylum information gathering' area of the EMAS site includes:

• the range of educational and language backgrounds of asylum seekers
• information gathering from families
• information-giving to families, children and carers
• information for planning purposes
• curriculum.

Further resources

Home from home: a guidance and resource pack for the welcome and inclusion of refugee children and families, Salusbury WORLD/Save the Children, 2004

Home from home is a resource pack that provides guidance for the successful inclusion of refugee children and families into school. The materials have come from the experience of staff at Salusbury WORLD, an innovative refugee project based at Salusbury Primary School.

The effective practice described in this pack will be relevant to anyone who works in support of children’s education in both primary and secondary sectors: teachers and teaching assistants, learning mentors, home/school liaison workers, educational psychologists and others.

The pack is divided into clearly signposted sections for quick and easy reference. It includes a section on involving parents, including guidance and extensive links to information on family learning.

An order form can be downloaded from the Salusbury WORLD website. http://www.salusburyworld.org.uk/

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