The views and experiences of primary school teachers regarding personal education plans (PEPs) for children in care in Northern Ireland

Abstract

This thesis explores the views and experiences of primary school teachers in Northern Ireland regarding Personal Education Plans. These provide a crucial mechanism through which the education of children in care is supported and promoted. Their emergence occurs in a context in which there is overwhelming international evidence that the educational outcomes of children in care are poor in comparison with their peers. In Northern Ireland, in response to the ongoing concern regarding these poor educational outcomes, the Department of Education has introduced policy and guidance to meet the region’s obligations to support the educational needs of children in care; enhance multi-agency working and promote the voice of the child in the education planning process. Despite these ongoing developments, there is very little research that focuses on the experiences and views of professionals in the field of education tasked with the implementation of Personal Education Plans. To address this gap, this research study, informed in its design, implementation and dissemination by a Research Advisory Group, utilises an interpretive qualitative inquiry approach and through semi-structured interviews with 20 professional teachers, and an in-depth focus group with three teachers elicits their views regarding Personal Education Plans and their implementation in practice. Informed by the concepts of Pierre Bourdieu and a children’s rights framework, the thesis highlights ongoing concerns regarding education planning practices. It argues that an embedded children’s rights based Personal Educational Planning process would help address current educational attainment gaps, contribute to improvements in realising the education rights of children in care, and help inform the future role that might be played by Personal Education Plans in enhancing educational outcomes for children in care.

Date of Award	Jul 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Queen's University Belfast
Sponsors	Northern Ireland Department for the Economy
Supervisor	Karen Winter (Supervisor) & Danielle Mackle (Supervisor)