What do we want to let the Scottish Government know? There is a gap between primary and secondary schools in relation to wellbeing Need to focus on wellbeing not attainment Poverty is political – we can mitigate the effects of poverty but we need to redistribute resources Don’t pathologise by focusing on ACEs – sort the structural issues We need holistic ‘joined-up’ thinking – communities, families and schools Looking beyond literacy and numeracy to raise attainment Be better at listening Consider how we assess schools – it’s not all about attainment

Main message Children and Young People having a sense of belonging is key Positive relationships and a sense of agency will benefit all young people Inequality is a human rights issue The need to act and to be ‘fierce champions’ for CYP Happiness, care, understanding – but acknowledge there is already a lot of positive work going on in schools The ‘small stuff’ really matters

Change in practice Listen more to young people Add ‘sense of belonging’ to organization’s aims Think about language Challenge structural inequality but focus on smiles, kindness, care and love – no resource required Keep making connections in practice and read more, make the connections in research

3 of the Keynote speakers asked us to close our eyes and think about… Belonging Transition Care By getting in touch with what these mean to us can we start to get a better idea about what they mean for young people?

What we all have in common As professionals, policy-makers, academics how can we hold on to that memory of our younger selves and allow it to surface and shape our work? Do we over-complicate and create distance in attempts to be ‘professional’ or ‘objective’? How important is it that as adults we have a sense of belonging in our workplace?