This week, we’re focusing on transition—helping young people navigate this key moment in their education journey with confidence.
Nestled in the village of Spixworth, near Norwich, Woodland View Junior School is part of the CARE Federation and is known for its warm, inclusive, and student-centred approach.
The school values academic achievement alongside emotional and physical wellbeing, emphasising a learning environment where children feel safe, understood, and encouraged to explore their unique talents.
In response to the emotional challenges brought by lockdowns, Woodland View saw a strong need to help students transition with confidence and resilience, particularly as they prepare for the leap from primary to secondary school.
Introducing Sam White, PE Lead at Woodland View Junior School
Sam White, Woodland View’s dedicated PE Lead, brings a deep understanding of the role that physical education and movement play in building mental wellbeing and resilience.
Passionate about using movement as a medium for growth beyond physical skills. Sam has championed the integration of the Norfolk RISE Up Transition Programme at Woodland View.
His insights and hands-on approach have been pivotal in tailoring the programme to meet the specific needs of Woodland View’s students, making the school a nurturing space where emotional and academic growth go hand in hand.
Below, Sam White shares Woodland View’s journey with RISE Up, highlighting the intent, implementation, impact, and alignment with Norfolk County Council’s evidence-based principles for effective school transitions.
Woodland View Junior School: Norfolk RISE Up Transition Programme – In Sam White’s Words
Intent: Supporting Transitions and Building Resilience Post-Lockdown
“Our main goal with the RISE Up programme was to make the transition from primary to secondary school smoother for our Year 6 students, equipping them with the resilience and confidence they need for this big step.
We’ve always known our students enjoy PE, but we saw an opportunity to link this enthusiasm for movement with mental wellbeing, which became even more important after the lockdown period.
“We identified specific students who might benefit most – those who struggled emotionally or exhibited certain behaviours that indicated a need for more support. RISE Up gave us a way to develop their emotional intelligence, teaching them the vocabulary to describe what they’re feeling and practical strategies for self-regulation.
Ultimately, we wanted all of our Year 6 students to feel ready for secondary school and to bring these benefits to younger students, embedding it within our whole-school approach.”
Implementation: Embedding RISE Up Strategies in Daily Practice
“We approached RISE Up as a chance to weave wellbeing into our everyday routines, and it’s been rewarding to see how it’s naturally fitted into our school culture:
Weekly PSHE and Movement Lessons: We structured our Year 6 PSHE lessons around RISE Up topics, dedicating 30-minute sessions each week with quick 10-minute follow-ups. Each session includes some form of movement, whether it’s yoga, a group game, or even a game the students created themselves. We wanted movement to become second nature for self-regulation and stress relief, and it’s made a big difference, especially during the lead-up to KS2 SATs.
RISE Up Lunchtime Club and Parental Engagement: We opened up a RISE Up club at lunchtime for students needing more focused support. We also sent letters to parents explaining the programme and inviting feedback. The response has been incredibly positive, with many parents reaching out to involve their children based on what they’d heard. It’s been great to have that extra support from home.
Daily Mile Reflection: For our Daily Mile, we added reflective questions, encouraging students to think about how they’re feeling as they walk or run. This helps them process their thoughts and teaches them the value of reflection through movement.
Stormbreak One-to-One Interventions Led by Miss O’Connor: Our Pastoral Lead, Miss O’Connor, has been integral in implementing Stormbreak, providing tailored one-to-one support for vulnerable students. Her dedication to the programme is evident in the level of engagement achieved: 69 pathways have been assigned, 43 of these pathways were shared with families for home support, and 202 stages have been completed, with 30 pathways brought to full completion. This level of engagement has been nothing short of remarkable and has truly helped students build resilience, regulation, and confidence.
Staff Training and Resource Accessibility: Four staff members completed full RISE Up and Trauma-Informed PE training, with several more starting as we continue. This has allowed us to sustain the programme, and teachers appreciate having access to resources they can revisit when planning.”
Tailoring Support for Individual Needs
“RISE Up and Trauma-Informed PE allowed us to meet students where they were and personalise support for unique needs. Miss O’Connor’s involvement with Stormbreak exemplifies this personalised approach.
Her remarkable engagement with the programme has provided one-to-one emotional regulation and support to our most vulnerable students:
● 69 pathways were assigned to pupils requiring extra support.
● 43 pathways were shared with families for added reinforcement at home, extending support beyond the school day.
● 202 stages were completed within the pathways, showing active engagement and progression. [to note there are 6 stages in each pathway. Each stage gives children 20 - 30 minutes of focused movement and conversation time with a trusted adult. This means in total children at Woodland View received a combined total of 5050 minutes of mentally healthy movement in six months].
● 30 pathways have been fully completed, which has had a powerful effect on pupils’ ability to recognise, respond and self-regulate to support their emotional wellbeing.
“This depth of tailored support has been a game-changer for our students, helping each one develop emotional intelligence and the strategies needed to manage their wellbeing effectively. Miss O’Connor’s leadership with Stormbreak has added significant value to our RISE Up efforts.”
Miss O’Connor said:
“The Stormbreak ‘Be Strengthened’ pathway [to support transition to secondary school] gave our Year 6 children time to think about their worries and time to address them with me and each other, so their worries wouldn’t grow.
Before starting the Shine pathway, I had one child who would often start the school day crying and shaking. After starting the pathway, we were quickly able to identify that his worry had stemmed from hearing stories from older children talking about the ‘bad things’ that happen when you start secondary school.
We were able to speak to the parents, and explain to the child that these stories were not true. Through the pathway we were also able to provide the child with strategies to manage his worry. Almost immediately the crying and shaking stopped.
By the end of the summer term we noticed he was completely relaxed and was able to talk to his mum more openly and honestly. When this child left our school in the summer, he gave me a painted pebble as a gift that simply said ‘calm’. We had used pebbles in one of our stormbreak activities.
For this first year in a long time, I have not heard about any issues from the local secondary school relating to any of our children who have started in Year 7. They all did the stormbreak Be Strengthened pathway with me. This programme has meant children have felt listened to and felt like we were taking their worries seriously”.
Impact: Growing Confidence, Self-Awareness, and Emotional Vocabulary
Sam explained “To measure the programme’s impact, we adapted the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) to suit our younger age group, using it to establish a baseline for our focus groups.
I’m pleased to say that, after participating in the RISE Up programme, our children showed improvement in every single area assessed. We saw gains in areas like self-confidence, emotional vocabulary, and the ability to handle stress.
The ability to discuss and articulate feelings has been a game-changer for many of our students.
Seeing a 41.67% improvement in how our teachers perceive student wellbeing is incredible—it shows just how much of a difference this intervention has made for our children at Woodland View.
● Increased Confidence and Self-Awareness: Our Year 6 students have shown a marked increase in self-confidence and emotional vocabulary. They’re now better able to name and manage their emotions. Each student has a personalised strategy sheet on their desk to support self-regulation, which gives them a sense of agency over their emotions.
● Improved Communication and Parental Involvement: We’ve noticed improved communication between students and teachers, as well as a decrease in parent calls about emotional concerns. Parents are noticing the changes at home, which is a testament to the programme’s reach and impact.
● School Wellbeing Scorecard Improvement: We’ve seen an 8% improvement in our School Wellbeing Scorecard, moving from a high starting point of 82% in March to an impressive 90% by October. This increase reflects not only the programme’s positive impact but also the dedication of our staff and students to making Woodland View a supportive and resilient environment.
Pre
Post
● Positive Feedback from Parents and Staff: Many parents have observed new levels of confidence in their children, and our staff is fully on board. Teachers see the value in having structured emotional support as part of their curriculum, especially during times when students feel more stress.”
Aligning with Norfolk County Council’s Evidence-Based Transition Principles
The RISE Up programme supports Norfolk County Council’s transition principles in ways that have had a lasting impact on our school culture:
Supporting Students to Be ‘Ready’ for School: RISE Up prepares our students to feel secure and grounded each day. The routines and movement practices we’ve built into the school day give students the confidence and stability they need, no matter what their morning might have looked like at home.
Tailoring Support for Individual Needs: Our approach with RISE Up and Trauma-Informed PE has always been to meet students where they are, personalising support to their unique needs. Whether it’s one-to-one Stormbreak sessions or tailored movement breaks, we’re able to reach students in meaningful ways that help them build resilience.
Creating a Welcoming, Safe, and Engaging Environment: Our school values of CARE – Community, Adventure, Respect and Excellent along with our three core rule ‘Ready, Respectful, Safe’—are deeply reinforced by the principles of RISE Up. We’ve made our environment more inclusive and engaging, adding resources for active play and even restructuring our physical spaces to support self-regulation.
Developing Safe and Trusting Relationships: RISE Up has strengthened the bonds between staff and students, particularly among our most vulnerable students. We created student profiles, which students share with their future teachers at Sprowston Community Academy. This allows students to start secondary school with established connections, easing their transition.
Reflecting on Transitions: Working closely with Sprowston, we set up sessions where students and future teachers could connect over activities like Kinball. This proactive relationship-building has created a more seamless pathway for students and strengthened our relationship with Sprowston, which will only grow in future years.
Looking Ahead: Sustaining a Culture of Wellbeing
“Moving forward, we’re excited to embed these RISE Up practices across year groups, starting earlier in the year so that we can see even greater impact. Our partnership with Sprowston Community Academy continues to grow, and we’re planning more shared activities to support the transition from Year 6 to Year 7.
Ultimately, we’re working towards a culture where resilience, self-awareness, and emotional safety are as much a part of Woodland View as our academic goals.”
Heallen Payne, Head of School said:
‘Our journey with Rise Up! began after signposting by the Virtual School; it has been a really interesting journey for pupils and staff alike.
The resource has been very flexible with pupils being able to use the Stormbreak modules assigned to them.
Pupil engagement has been fantastic – they have loved the interactive nature of the programme and the chance to earn certificates whilst learning strategies to support themselves.
I was concerned about how implementing the resource may impact on workload but after initial training I can share that workload reduced as pupils were able to use the resource to develop their skills, increase their resilience and became less dependent on our staff.
Staff have fully embraced the programme and have been great advocates for its use. Our school values spell CARE and I am very privileged to be working with such a great team who really do care about the whole child.’
A Heartfelt Thank You
A huge thank you to Heallen Payne, Sam White, Karen O’Connor, and the entire team at Woodland View Junior School for their exceptional commitment to transforming children's mental wellbeing and life chances.
Their dedication to their young people and families is truly inspiring and showcases the profound impact educators have every single day across the country. Woodland View’s journey with RISE Up stands as a testament to what’s possible when schools prioritise resilience, wellbeing, and a nurturing environment for all students.
Fully Funded Training for Norfolk Schools
As part of the Norfolk RISE Up programme, Norfolk County Council is fully funding access to Future Action's RISE Up Early Intervention Mental Wellbeing and Trauma-Informed PE Teacher Training Courses for all primary, secondary, and special schools in Norfolk.
Since September, over 80 Norfolk schools have signed up, and we'd love for your school to join us in this vital initiative.
These courses equip educators with tools to improve student wellbeing, build resilience, and create safe, nurturing environments.
Sign Up Now
To access the fully funded courses for the 2024-25 academic year, complete our brief one-minute form here:
Once registered, you’ll receive an email with all the details needed to start your training and transform your teaching practice.
Opportunities for Schools Outside Norfolk
If you’re based outside Norfolk, there are still opportunities to enhance student wellbeing in your school:
Start with Our School Wellbeing Scorecard: Complete this 3-minute quiz to map your school’s wellbeing provision and identify key focus areas tailored to your needs.
👉 Access the School Wellbeing Scorecard Here
Receive Complimentary Training Access: Upon completing the Scorecard, you’ll receive a personalised report and a complimentary login to experience the first two steps of our 9-Step RISE Up Teacher Training Course.
Explore Further Support
Whether you're in Norfolk or elsewhere, we offer a range of additional services to support your school's wellbeing initiatives:
Specialist courses and consultancy.
Keynote speaking engagements.
Access to our book: ‘Time to RISE Up’.
👉 Join Our Waiting List Here
Learn More About Stormbreak Shine
The Stormbreak Shine Programme played a crucial role in the Norfolk RISE Up Transition Pilot, providing targeted 1-to-1 support through mentally healthy movement and conversation time.
Thank you for all you do to transform the life chances of your young people.
Have a brilliant week.
Neil Moggan and the Future Action Team
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