Interventions, opportunities and projects

Advice and guidance on interventions, opportunities and projects for virtual school.

Interventions

Intervention availability in Essex.

​Into University

The IntoUniversity programme is designed to be a long-term academic and pastoral service for students from the age of 7 to 18 years.

Students who work with us in the FOCUS programme in your school may also be able to take advantage of our other programmes outside school including the following:

  • academic support
  • mentoring
  • other enrichment opportunities

For more information download the following documents:

Video Interaction Guidance for Essex Children in Care or Previously Looked After

In the Virtual School, we are building our capacity to offer a Video Interaction Guidance (VIG) Intervention for children/young people and school adults, in situations where there are some difficulties in the child being able to settle to learn, trust adults or feel like they belong at school.

The aim is to strengthen their connection to the school through relationships with key adults, and so enable them to feel able to access education. We hope it will also improve self-esteem and feelings of self-efficacy. Please read the guidance document to find out more. If you wish a child/young person to be considered for VIG, please complete a student profile.

Video Interaction Guidance Training Offer for School Staff

What is Video Interaction Guidance?

It is a strengths-based, brief intervention that uses short video clips of interactions between adults and children to strengthen relationships, connection and understanding. There is a good evidence base of its effectiveness in school settings in improving attainment and children's sense of belonging. Please watch the YouTube video for more information.

What is Virtual School offering?

We have 8 funded spaces on our 2025 to 2026 training programme for senior leadership staff members who could use this intervention with the staff, children and even parents in their schools or across their trusts. This would ideally be a Designated Teacher, DSL or Pastoral Lead. 

The training includes:

  • an initial in-person training course on Thursday 15 January 2026 and Friday 16 January 2025 in Chelmsford.
  • 15 hours of supervision across the accreditation period
  • mid-point review, accreditation, access to the online learning platform, group supervision as desired and a half-day development day
  • support around technical issues, GDPR and storage
  • we will offer a professional-focused Video Enhanced Reflective Practice CPD course in the autumn term to give you a taster of VIG, so that you can decide if it's right for you and your setting

What do I and my school need to do?

  • our expectation is that schools focus primarily on children who have, or have needed, a social worker over the accreditation period
  • we also expect that schools provide anonymised pre- and post-intervention academic data so we can measure impact. We would like this to continue post-accreditation to build the evidence base.
  • schools would need to provide the video equipment (a tablet or encrypted phone) and ensure the process of recording, editing, storing and sharing videos is compliant with your organisation
  • schools would need to ensure the practitioner has the capacity to do the intervention and work towards accreditation - around two hours per fortnight is ideal but this is flexible around the fluctuating demands of the year. 

How long does accreditation take?

On average, about 18 months. Some people complete it in as little as 12 months, and others take a bit longer. Supervision is flexible to meet your needs. To reach accreditation, a practitioner needs to have completed 18 "cycles" of filming and reviewing the film with at least 6 adult-child pairs, and have had 15 supervisions. 

How do I register interest?

Please email christina.addenbrooke@essex.gov.uk with your details as soon as possible. We will be in touch with further information and an invite to an on online information session.