How to Support a Foster Child Moving From Primary to Secondary School

The move from primary school to secondary school can be an exciting but daunting time, both for children and their families.

As a foster carer, you may find yourself supporting a child through the transition from primary to secondary school and wondering how you can best help. Thankfully, there’s a lot you can do to help make the switch go smoothly. Read on to find out how to support a foster child moving from primary to secondary school.

The Challenges of Starting Secondary School For Children In Foster Care

Some children breeze through the transition to high school, while others struggle with the leap from primary to secondary. Life experiences, personality type, and environmental factors will all play a part in how difficult - or not - a child finds the move.

As well as all the usual concerns that children might have about starting secondary school - such as finding the right classroom, wearing a new uniform, and worrying about making friends, foster children may have unique concerns about making the switch from one school to another.

Children in care are more likely to have experienced greater instability than their peers outside of the care system. While this can sometimes make them appear outwardly resilient, inside, it may be a different story.

Many children in foster care are distrustful of change - even positive change, as they’ve already had to deal with so much of it in their young lives. They might worry about how to handle the change, or about what happens if they don’t like their school, their peers or their teachers. They may be concerned about not fitting in socially, or about what people will think if they find out that they’re in care.

Some foster children will have gaps in their education due to disruption, and they might worry about being behind their peers academically or feel pressure to catch up. They may also be anxious about having to switch schools again if their placement or plan changes in the future.

All of this can be amplified further if a child has only recently moved into a new foster placement just before starting secondary school. They may find themselves starting secondary school before they’re fully settled in their new home or before they know the local area.

Why Does It Matter?

Settling into their new school well ensures that a child’s secondary education gets off to the best possible start.

Secondary education is vitally important to all children because it acts as a stepping stone to so many other things, including further and higher education and employment. Doing well at secondary school can also open up opportunities for foster children, which can help to bridge the attainment gap and ensure they get the same life chances as their peers who haven’t been in care.

Foster carers are ideally placed to help the children living with them take this important step towards their future.

Preparing a Foster Child For Secondary School

Here are some tips on how to support a foster child moving from primary to secondary school.

Make Sure They Know What to Expect (And What’s Expected of Them!)

Ideally, you want to familiarise your foster child with their new school ahead of time. If possible, they should be able to attend planned transition days or look around the school so that they’re familiar with its location and layout.

Before they start at the school, make sure they know how they’ll be getting there and back, and what the school times, rules, and routines are.

Dressed For Success

A school uniform is a big part of the transition from primary to secondary. Make sure that your foster child’s new school uniform is clean and well-fitting. If they’re new to the area, try to get the correct uniform sorted out as soon as possible - no child wants to stand out from the crowd for all the wrong reasons!

Ensure your foster child has everything they need for their first week, including maths equipment, stationery, and a full PE kit. Labelling everything with name tapes or stickers can help you get back any lost items during the school year.

Establish a Morning Routine

Establishing a morning routine helps everyone’s day get off to a better start. Plus, being able to get yourself up and ready for the day ahead is an important life skill that all children need.

Make sure your foster child knows whose responsibility it is that they get up on time. Should they set an alarm? Or will you wake them up? Make sure they have time for a shower before school and encourage them to eat a healthy breakfast so you know they’re set up for the day ahead.

Make Homework a Priority

Wherever possible, make homework a priority after school, so that it gets done before other hobbies or hanging out with friends.

Getting into the habit of doing homework straight away, rather than leaving it to the night before, avoids last-minute panics or sanctions from school when it’s forgotten.

Your foster child will need a distraction-free area where they can complete their homework, whether that’s a desk in their own room, or a clear kitchen table where they can work uninterrupted.

Communication With School

It’s important that foster carers have good working relationships with all professionals involved in their child’s care, and that includes teachers and other school staff.

Keep the school updated with any relevant developments, and familiarise yourself with who to contact at school if you have concerns, for example, the pastoral or SEN leads.

Making Friends

Making friends is a key part of growing up, and the social side of school can feel just as important to teenagers as the education they get while they’re there.

Starting secondary school is an opportunity for children to make new friends, and build support networks that will help them transition towards independence in the future. It can be harder for adults to help children make friends as they get older, particularly after the leap from primary to secondary, where there are fewer opportunities to meet other parents and carers at the school gates and set up play dates!

However, you can still encourage your foster child to make friends by allowing them to invite friends over after school or at weekends. You can also help them explore any extra curricular activities on offer during or after school, to help them meet other pupils with shared interests.

Olive Branch Fostering - Support When You Need It

If your foster child is stepping up to secondary school this time, we hope this blog has helped and wish them every success at this exciting new stage of their life.

At Olive Branch, we know how important the transition from primary to secondary school is, and the difference the right support can make to our children. We also know how important it is that foster carers are supported too. That’s why we’re on hand for our carers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 356 days a year. So no matter what the time of day or night, we’re here, ready to listen, give advice and offer solutions.

If you’d like to find out more about becoming a foster carer with Olive Branch or are thinking of transferring to us, we’d love to hear from you. Contact us today or book a call-back with one of our friendly fostering advisors.