FRIENDS TRAINING COURSES
2nd Sept 2015
Dear Primary Principals,
NEPS’ psychologists will be running FRIENDS training courses for teachers in Navan Education
Centre during the autumn term. FRIENDS are evidence-based, anxiety prevention, resilience
building programmes for children and young people. See information sheet below for details of
the FRIENDS programmes that are relevant to primary schools.
Training 1: October 21st and 22nd
Training 2: November 23rd and 26th
There will be 60 training places in total available for primary teachers. The cost of the training
is €70 per teacher, this includes teacher manuals, teacher workbooks and lunch. Please note
that substitute cover is not provided for teachers attending FRIENDS trainings.
Given the popularity of this training and in light of feedback at post-training cluster meetings
last year, NEPS will prioritise applications on the following basis:

Schools who have been actively delivering the FRIENDS programmes over the past number
of years, who have a clear strategy to roll out FRIENDS more comprehensively within their
schools and who need additional teachers trained for this purpose.

Schools for whom FRIENDS is a new initiative, and who have identified the promotion of
socio-emotional skills and resilience as a high priority for their school. Principals of such
schools are invited to an information meeting with NEPS (Tuesday 15th Sept @ 3.30, Navan
Education Centre) where they will be informed of the programme, the commitment required
and factors that make for successful implementation. Schools new to the programme, whose
principals have attended the information meeting, will be prioritised for training places.

Please note that a commitment to implement the programme within this academic year is
understood from all teachers who attend training.
If you are interested in putting teachers forward for this training, please complete the
‘Submission of Interest’ form below and return by Tuesday 22nd September 2015 to:
Bridget Tiernan, NEPS, 2nd Floor Government Buildings, Kilcarn, Navan, CO Meath.
or
Bridget_Tiernan@education.gov.ie)
Yours Sincerely
Mary Mullany
Senior Educational Psychologist
NEPS Navan Team
SUBMISSION OF INTEREST FORM: ‘FRIENDS’ - PRIMARY TRAINING
NAME OF SCHOOL:
NAME OF PRINCIPAL: _________________
ROLL NUMBER: ______________ YOUR NEPS PSYCHOLOGIST:____________________
1.
Have teachers in your school already had FRIENDS
training?
YES
(If ‘No’, please go to question 6)
2. Names and role of trained teachers (Class teacher, Learning Support etc.)
Name(s):
Position(s) in School:
3. How many FRIENDS programmes have been delivered to
date in your school?
NO
4. What classes have you targeted in the past?
5. Did your staff deliver a Parent Workshop?
2015-16
6. What is your FRIENDS’ delivery strategy for 2015/16?
7. Teachers you would ideally like trained to meet this target:
Name of Teacher(s):
Position(s) in School:
8. I can facilitate two FRIENDS-trained teachers to deliver
the programme to a whole class over 12-20 weekly sessions
as part of the SPHE programme.
YES
NO
9. I can release teachers involved to attend the 2-day
facilitator training and a 2-hour follow-up support meeting
mid-way through delivery of the programme (Spring term)
Schools without previous FRIENDS training may choose to
complete questions 6-9 after the information meeting.
10. I will attend the FRIENDS Information meeting on
Tuesday September 15th @ 3.30pm, in Navan Education
Centre.
YES
NO
Principal’s Signature:___________________________ Date: _______________________
School e mail address _________________________
The FRIENDS Programmes
“Fun FRIENDS” and “FRIENDS for Life” are evidence-based anxiety prevention and resilience
building programme designed for use in primary schools. Developed by Dr Paula Barrett in
Australia, the programmes are designed to teach students the skills required to manage
their thoughts, emotions and body responses to life stresses. The programmes also seek to
develop self-esteem and teach coping skills in a simple and structured way. It is a positive,
fun learning experience that does not require any clinical assessment or diagnosis and
avoids labelling young people as anxious or different.
“FRIENDS for Life” consists of 10 sessions plus 2 booster sessions. During these sessions
pupils are guided through a series of class-based activities which were built around the core
themes of the programme. The sessions may be delivered over a longer time frame but
must be delivered as a continuous programme and in sequence.
“FRIENDS” is the only anxiety prevention programme acknowledged by the World Health
Organization for its 12 years of comprehensive validation in schools and health clinics across
several countries and languages. The programme meets many of the aims of the SPHE
curriculum in terms of promoting physical, mental and emotional well-being in addition to
providing pupils with opportunities for reflection and discussion.
“FUN FRIENDS” is aimed at the younger age group and consists of 12 sessions. This is a
more play-based programme for building resilience in 4-7 year olds. ‘FRIENDS for Life’ is
aimed at the middle-upper primary age group. Both programmes teach practical strategies
for coping with stress, worry, fear and sadness and in so doing, foster resilience.
What does FRIENDS stand for?
The word ‘FRIENDS” is an acronym for the skills taught progressively throughout the
programme. The acronym helps pupils to remember the coping steps to follow when they
feel emotionally distressed:
F-Feelings
R- Remember to Relax.
I – Inner Helpful Thoughts
Have quiet time.
I can try my
best
E- Explore solutions and
coping step plans
N- Now reward yourself, you’ve
done your best!
D – Don’t forget to practice the skills you have learned.
S- Stay strong inside and share your skills with your support networks!
What is involved in the Programme?
The initial sessions focus on developing an awareness of our feelings and how in turn, our
feelings may affect our thinking and actions. Through group activities, pupils are encouraged
to become aware of their “body cues” for a variety of feelings such as happy, sad, worried,
anxious etc.
The programme teaches pupils to be able to identify times when they may be worried or
anxious and in turn how to positively react to these feelings. Opportunities are provided to
learn about and experience different relaxation methods such as “mindfulness”, “deep
breathing” and a short massage routine.
A key learning point in the programme is how we can think in different ways about a given
situation. The image of traffic lights helps pupils to identify how “Unhelpful” or “Red”
thoughts may be challenged by “Orange” or “Thought challenger questions” to become
“Helpful” or “Green” thoughts. By concentrating on thoughts that are more helpful we can
cope more successfully with difficult situations. In turn, these coping skills can increase our
confidence and willingness to try new things.
The latter stages of the programme focus on developing coping and problem solving skills.
The coping step plan encourages children to break difficult situations down into small and
manageable steps. For example the coping step plan presented below describes how the
task of “Reading aloud in class” can be broken down into six progressive steps.
Pupils engage in experiential learning and get an opportunity to put their skills to the test by
firstly working in groups to discuss a host of scenarios where they are required to create,
think about and choose from different solutions for a given situation. They can then also
apply the skills they have learned to challenges they encounter in their everyday lives and
for personal goals they have set as part of the FRIENDS programme.
One of the highlights of the programme is the celebration party which takes place in session
10. This is designed to recognise the achievement of the pupils in their completion of the
programme and to encourage them to incorporate positive rewards into their own lives.
Who can deliver the FRIENDS programme?
Teachers who have attended accredited training can deliver this programme. Advantages of
teacher delivery include:

Access to a greater number of young people;

Non-stigmatising;

Positive role models;

FRIENDS’ language can infiltrate the curriculum and be applied to everyday
problems.
More information of the programme can be found on www.pathwayshrc.com.au.
A
research report of its use in Irish schools can be found on www.nbss.ie. Reflections from
Irish teachers and principals who have delivered the programme can be found at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDj1ny98hp0