For head teachers and policy makers in Birmingham

Speakers included Roger Weissberg, president of the Academic, Social and Emotional Learning Center (CASEL) at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and Jackie Hughes Head of School Effectiveness for Birmingham City Council.  

Birmingham is the largest local authority in Europe with a population of 1 million, of which 250,000 are under 18. The city launched an ambitious 5 year strategy for children last year which gives high priority to implementing evidence based programmes and focuses activity on six outcomes (social literacy, emotional wellbeing, behaviour, physical health, job skills and literacy/numeracy). 

The city is investing £41m in prevention and early intervention activity on an ‘invest to save’ basis. Heavily influenced by the work of Steve Aos from the Washington Institute for Public Policy, the city has assembled a portfolio of prevention and early intervention activity. This seminar was among a number of events designed to inform participants on the impact of evidence based programmes as opposed to those which have no proof that they work.