Working as a whole class, in small groups or 1:1, the Skill City virtual reality environment enables you to lead discussion on critical issues around challenging or unsafe situations and experiences faced by your young people. It will help you to develop their personal resilience and awareness of risk through problem solving and decision making, using the lesson plans and resources provided to enhance and embed learning.
The programme can add value to your existing PSHE curriculum and be an integral part of your pastoral care programme.
Skill City is designed to work on the hardware you already have in class including interactive screens, laptops, tablets and even phones. 360 is a social enterprise, led by teachers for teachers, supported by funding and expertise from national and regional partners.
360 aims to provide young people with knowledge and skills to make better decisions through:
360 supports the Ofsted Inspection Framework. The programme will help you to:
360 supports the HM Inspectors for Education (HMIE) Inspection Framework. The programme will help pupils to:
It will help you to ensure that your curriculum ‘effectively promotes safeguarding and wellbeing across all stages, taking good account of the context of the school.’
360 supports the Estyn Inspection Framework. The programme will help you to:
Please note: the 360 platform is not currently available in a Welsh language version. We are working to source funding for this.
360 supports Education Training Inspectorate (ETI) guidelines. The programme will help you to:
The 360 Safeguarding module can support schools to implement the guidance for schools in England (updated summer 2022).
Opportunities to teach safeguarding p.33 – 128 & 130.
National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland 2021
p45
The role of local authorities, governing bodies and proprietors of independent schools under the Education Act 2002
Pg47
Proactive approaches
Pg61
Annex 1 Model Safeguarding Policy
2. Prevention
Safeguarding and Child Protection in Schools A Guide for Schools (Updated June 2022)
Key Principles of Safeguarding and Child Protection
Pg1
Safeguarding begins with preventative education and activities which enable children and young people to grow up safely and securely in circumstances where their development and wellbeing is promoted.
Pg4
Safeguarding/Child Protection arrangements should be accessible in the school and understood by children so that they know what to do and who to go to.
Preventative Curriculum
Pg59
The curriculum also offers a medium to explore sensitive issues with children and young people in an age-appropriate way which helps them to develop appropriate protective behaviours.
In recent years, the use of “keeping safe messages” and the term “preventative curriculum” have become more widely used to denote the proactive promotion of positive emotional health and wellbeing of pupils within and across the broader school community.
This is achieved by raising awareness of social, emotional, and health issues, developing the confidence, resiliencies and coping skills of pupils, and in offering early intervention when pupils are experiencing certain difficulties.
Schools are well-placed to teach pupils how to develop healthy relationships, and to make informed choices in their lives so that they can protect themselves.
The ETI report ‘An evaluation of preventative education and the statutory curriculum to inform the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation’ published in September 2014 found that the schools with the most effective provision are proactive in identifying local issues and promote a preventative curriculum to build the confidence, self-esteem, and personal resiliencies of children so that they can develop coping strategies and can make more positive choices in a range of situations.
360 is an innovative programme that encourages creative and critical thinking, problem-solving, questioning, communication and collaboration. It promotes core behaviours such as resilience, respect, community, integrity and empathy.
Access to the programme includes:
Key benefits for your school and your pupils
Core skills for life
Pupils will develop creative and critical thinking, problem solving, resilience, respect for self and others, integrity, empathy to self & others, decision making, self-confidence, community, communication and collaboration skills.
Discuss. Decide. Do.
Using decision-based learning, the programme enables pupils to learn what to avoid or know what to do when faced with a potential Safeguarding incident.
Earlier intervention through heightened pupil awareness
With pupils recognising and having the confidence to communicate potential dangers, concerns are identified earlier and faster.
Experiential learning in a unique virtual environment
Explore a park, alleyway, bedroom, kitchen-diner, outside the school and skate park. Our VR environment brings decision-making to life in a safe, interactive environment. Remember, no specialist VR headsets required!
Fun and engaging learning
Stimulating scenario and role play based. Delivered by teachers using a virtual Skill City, classroom learning and where appropriate outdoor activities.
Materials from the specialists
Our programmes are developed and kept up to date in partnership with subject specialist agencies to ensure best practice and relevance.
Multi-user account
Schools can add multiple teachers to their own account, making it easy to administer.
Personalised dashboard
Manage and monitor curriculum delivery from one easy to access place.
Schools and pupil led content
Teachers and the children in their classrooms are at the centre of what we do. It’s why we involve both groups in the design and development of our programmes.
Special offer with The Safeguarding Company
Schools subscribing to both 360 and MyConcern from The Safeguarding Company can save 10%.
Teaching planning tools and resources
To support with delivery of statutory process (eg Safeguarding Boards/ Ofsted).
Wellbeing
The 360 programme will help to build pupils’ mental and physical health and well-being, resulting in happier and more fulfilled children.
An initial survey undertaken in June 2022 by Police Service Northern Ireland showed high levels of satisfaction with the pilot programme.
A full academic evaluation of schools use of 360 across England and Northern Ireland will be published in 2023.
360 gives children the tools and confidence they will need to make positive decisions in everyday life.
We talk to each other and decide which option we think is best. If we disagree on what happens we try one and see what happens. [Because you have to cross roads in Skill City] this is helping me to be ready for secondary school when I have to walk a long way past cars parked on the path.
The interactivity of 360 alongside pupil-led learning [means that] learners can make choices in a safe environment.
It’s like a game and you have pick the right decisions in real life situations but it’s fun at the same time.
360 is really cool. It is super realistic and helps me to understand what to do when something like happens in real life.
I like the way you can walk around the whole city and it’s not limited to one thing and after you finish the missions you can walk around and do what you like.
We've really benefitted from the whole class discussions. For example, this morning [we talked] about what risk and risk assessment is... what could go wrong and understanding how to stay safe. We've... linked [this to] school trips, walking home or going to the park... and in terms of... friendship groups too.
I like it because it teaches you lessons with having fun doing it.
I like the 360 commitment to anytime, anywhere access, which is particularly relevant now.
[360] provides an opportunity to ask PSHE-related questions without asking the pupil directly. [This] means [you] can see a more accurate picture of how a pupil may respond in real life – as it mimics a video game, it gives an insight to a more natural response.
The missions were so useful because they helped us make good decisions.
It’s very fun because there are multiple choices and based on your options it can go a different way.
A child asked if we could do 360 again as soon as he came in the next morning, highlighting just how much the programme motivates [pupils].
I've learnt to make safer choices, to do what is best and what I think, not just what others think. [It has helped] me to have a clearer mind... sometimes [friends] make you do stuff you maybe don't want to do. But now I feel I might change my point of view and be more confident.
Learners are excited by it and students are quick to pick it up.
Even if the scenario had been something the learner had experienced before, it is still a useful tool as allows them to revisit the experience and discuss, and think about advice they might give to others about that scenario.
We didn't have a clue how to play at first, but then we showed our teacher what to do! It was lots of fun!
I've learnt that you don't always have to choose the decisions that your friends want you to make. You could [make] your own decisions.
We currently have limited fully funded places for state primary or secondary schools (local authority or academies) in the following areas:-
Please get in touch as soon as possible to check if your school is eligible and to get your login.
The complete safeguarding package: Receive 10% off 360 if you subscribe to MyConcern at the same time. Find out more.
You’ll probably have lots of questions and our handy frequently asked questions section should help. But we’re here to help, so do contact us if you want to find out more.
Head to the login page and click ‘forgotten password’. If that doesn’t work, contact us.
Phase 1 on safeguarding, available from Spring 2022, is appropriate for 10-14 year olds. That’s Year 6 in England and Wales or Primary 7 in Northern Ireland and Scotland, to Year 9 in England and Wales, Year 10 in Northern Ireland and Secondary 3 in Scotland. (We don’t decide on the confusing differences in labelling!). We hope to extend provision to the whole primary age group very soon.
See our Teacher page for a full list of benefits. 360 is an innovative and exciting approach to leading PSHE sessions in school, which will engage, enthuse and inform the young people in your class – and help you meet curriculum, inspection and KCSiE objectives. You will also find it fun to teach.
In our first phase, covering Safeguarding for 10 – 14s, you will be able to access:-
Should any new phases come on stream during your membership, you will be able to access these with no additional charge.
In addition to the Skill City VR, 360 provides schemes of work, lesson plans and extension activities, reading lists, and a database of trusted resources from other organisations. Member schools also have access to onboarding and training materials, plus ‘live’ support by phone, email or video call.
There are no definitive answers, as much depends on context. Our aim is to teach young people to think, rather than simply remember random facts. However, our teaching plans will provide you with everything you need to initiate and support open discussions, learning about risk, and making confident decisions.
If you need to discuss this just get in touch.
Listen to Mark Taylor, host and creator of the Education on Fire podcast, chat with our Founder and MD Rob Hattersley about skills for life education and the 360 platform.
The Safeguarding Company chat with 360 Skills For Life founder Rob Hattersley about the new safeguarding modules for 10-14 year olds, which help to meet new KCSiE guidelines.
We were delighted to feature in a recent podcast from the National Association for Primary Education (NAPE) to talk about our new safeguarding programme for upper primary.
