Susana Nunez, Second-level Education Officer, Educate Together
The Nurture Project continues to grow and thrive, helping schools create environments where children can develop essential social, emotional and behavioural skills. Through specialised training, resource-sharing, and peer collaboration, the project provides educators with the tools and support they need to nurture students facing challenges.
Thanks to the incredible commitment of school staff and funding from the Toy Show Appeal and additional funding from RETHINK, we have been able to expand the project’s reach, surpass key milestones and deepen our impact across the school network.
This year, the Nurture Project has grown to include 57 schools at both primary and second level, a clear reflection of the growing demand for and success of Nurture interventions. With the additional funding, we’ve been able to offer intensive eight-hour certified training to 85 staff members. New Nurture rooms are also being developed in participating schools, creating safe, welcoming spaces for students to flourish.
A key part of the project’s success is the opportunity for staff to connect and learn from one another through in-person Communities of Practice (CoP) meetings. Four of these have already taken place including those hosted by Cabra Community College for second level schools and Harcourt Terrace ETNS and Galway ETNS for primary, with two more planned before the end of the school year. Anyone interested in joining is warmly encouraged to get in touch.
Alongside these developments, we were delighted to welcome 27 attendees to an online session on Emotion Coaching, delivered by Lucy Mannion of TINT Education; another valuable opportunity to deepen understanding and refine practice.
Currently, 64 schools—representing 55% of our network—areactively engaged in Nurture. To further support these practitioners, we’re in the process of developing a dedicated online resource bank. This space will host a range of materials, many of which have already been generously shared by members of the Educate Together Nurture community. It will also include a short video on the principles of Emotion Coaching, designed for use in staff meetings or for individual professional development. If you have resources you’d like to contribute, please email them to susana.nunez@educatetogether.ie
The reach and recognition of Nurture continues to grow beyond our network. This year, Aoife Connaughton, Nurture Teacher at Powerstown ETNS, and Ann Swift, Independent Consultant and Researcher, presented at both the Trauma Informed Practice Conference (organised by Quality Matters) and the Nurture Conference 2024 (hosted by Nurturing Schools Ireland). Further showcasing the depth of expertise in our community, four second-level schools from our network led a session at the latter event, sharing insights into the implementation of Nurture at school level.
We are incredibly proud of what has been achieved so far.
