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Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE)

The ACE network's projects include See Me, Minute of Truth and Pull Up a Chair.

Who we are

Sarah Martin-Denham is the main convenor of the ACE network. She is Associate Professor of Care and Education, Vice-Chancellor Teaching Fellow and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and author for Sage publishers.

You can contact Sarah for further information or queries about the ACE network: sarah.denham@sunderland.ac.uk.

Projects

See Me

Children and young people (CYP) excluded from school are often invisible, with negative representation in the media. ‘See Me’ is a pilot creative arts voice project with over 200 CYP, 5-16 years, with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) excluded from school in north-east England. The purpose of the project is to recognise and champion the abilities of those excluded from school.

The first part of the project involved 10 CYP coming to the University to work with Sarah and performing arts company Cap a Pie to express through the arts how they see the world and how the world sees them.

The second part of the project involved over 200 CYP across eight alternative provision and pupil referral units across north-east England. Artists Frank Styles, Jo Howell, Hannah Gawne, and Angela Sandwith provided inspiring video workshops to show their art medium and what brings them joy. Sarah then delivered packs of resources to the schools to support the CYP in creating their own artworks with the theme of ‘joy’.

Minute of Truth

Three days were spent with 20 Ukrainian children across two secondary schools in north-east England. One was a large urban comprehensive school and the other was a smaller rural school. Purposive sampling was used to ensure the participants had the experience of living in and leaving a warzone.

Throughout the project, a Ukrainian translator was present. The children at both schools were already familiar with the translator as they taught there. Over three days, the children investigated the following research questions through participatory research and the arts (painting, sketching, collage) and writing (poetry and narrative).

Pull Up a Chair

Pull Up a Chair School Exclusion

Pull Up a Chair engaged 130 children aged 5-16 years in a creative arts project with four local artists. Of these, 68 shared their views on school exclusion. A further 28 children aged 5-16 years, previously excluded from school, took part in a creative arts project.

In 2018, Together for Children commissioned Sarah to ‘investigate the factors that impact upon social and emotional wellbeing of children and young people from 3-16 years, which may lead to exclusion from school’. 174 participants took part in the research, including 55 children previously excluded from school, 41 of their caregivers, and 78 education and health professionals.

Pull Up a Chair Post-16

Pull Up a Chair is an approach to phenomenological qualitative research led by Dr Sarah Martin-Denham.

Ten young people from a Sunderland Post 16 provision took part in Pull Up a Chair Post-16. Over five days, Ruth, a Theatre Maker, and Laura Degnan, a filmmaker, worked with Sarah and the young people to capture their views on the factors that impacted their attainment at secondary school. The project was funded by the SHINE Trust.

Pull Up a Chair films and resources

This training resource introduces discussion around the importance of recognising and responding to adversities, the importance of belonging, relationships and connections, and finding solutions to prevent exclusion in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and primary school age.

The purpose of the resource, the accompanying films and PowerPoint, is to help facilitate professionals and policymakers in better understanding the impact of exposure to adversity on the learning and development of children previously excluded from school.

This resource provides you, the lead/facilitator, a structure and guidance on how to deliver the training session. The three-part training resource has been designed to use as whole-school training; including senior leaders, governors, teachers, support staff, placement students and volunteers.

1. Recognising and responding to adversities

It is recommended that the series is delivered in its entirety to build and secure knowledge and understanding of the arising themes. This training session is expected to last 1 hour and 35 minutes.

Download the resources:

Watch Film 1 and Film 2, then at the end of the training session watch Film 6 and Film 7:

Film 1

Film 2

Film 6

Film 7

2. The importance of belonging, relationships and connections

It is recommended that the series is delivered in its entirety to build and secure knowledge and understanding of the arising themes. This training session is expected to last 1 hour and 25 minutes.

Download the resources:

Watch Film 3, then at the end of the training session watch Film 8.

Film 3

Film 8

3. Finding solutions to prevent exclusion from school

It is recommended that the series is delivered in its entirety to build and secure knowledge and understanding of the arising themes. This training session is expected to last 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Download the resources:

Watch Film 4 and Film 5, then at the end of the training session watch Film 9.

Film 4

Film 5

Film 9

This training resource introduces discussion around the importance of recognising and responding to adversities, the importance of belonging, relationships and connections, and finding solutions to prevent exclusion in the secondary age phase.

The purpose of the resource, the accompanying films and PowerPoint, is to help facilitate professionals and policymakers in better understanding the impact of exposure to adversity on the learning and development of children previously excluded from school.

This resource provides you, the lead/facilitator, a structure and guidance on how to deliver the training session. The three-part training resource has been designed to use as whole-school training; including senior leaders, governors, teachers, support staff, placement students and volunteers.

1. Recognising and responding to adversities

It is recommended that the series is delivered in its entirety to build and secure knowledge and understanding of the arising themes. This training session is expected to last 1 hour and 25 minutes.

Download the resources:


Watch Film 6 and Film 7, then at the end of the training session watch Film 1 and Film 2.

Film 6

Film 7

Film 1

Film 2

2. The importance of belonging, relationships and connections

It is recommended that the series is delivered in its entirety to build and secure knowledge and understanding of the arising themes. This training session is expected to last 1 hour and 25 minutes.

Download the resources:

Watch Film 8, then at the end of the training session watch Film 3.

Film 8

Film 3

3. Finding solutions to prevent exclusion from school

It is recommended that the series is delivered in its entirety to build and secure knowledge and understanding of the arising themes. This training session is expected to last 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Download the resources:

Watch Film 9, then at the end of the training session watch Film 4 and Film 5.

Film 9

Film 4

Film 5

Eight 'Pull Up a Chair' parents from two alternative provision schools took part in Pull Up a Chair. Over ten days and through creative arts approaches, the parents reflected on and explored their experiences of supporting their child up to and following school exclusion. Eight films were co-created, scripted, and performed by them with support and guidance from Sarah and Ruth, a Theatre Director. We hope that the films will be used to support thinking at a local and national level to change the school system at the roots.

Parents of primary-age children

Film 1

Film 2

Film 3

Film 4

Parents of secondary-age children

Film 5

Film 6

Film 7

Film 8