With the rollout of the Inclusive Mainstream Fund (IMF) and the national requirement for schools to publish robust Inclusion Strategies, school leaders and trust executives are facing a pivotal moment. The focus has firmly shifted from reactive, off-site intervention to building sustainable, high-impact inclusive provision inside our schools.
Mentoring is one of the most effective tools to drive an Inclusion Strategy. It bridges relational gaps, improves attendance, reduces exclusions, and builds emotional resilience across universal, targeted, and specialist tiers. However, mentoring is not a “one-size-fits-all” solution.
When mapping out your Inclusion Strategy, choosing the right delivery model for mentoring is just as critical as the decision to introduce it. Should you empower pupils through peer mentoring, upskill your existing teaching force with foundational mentoring techniques, or invest in fully trained, dedicated internal mentors?
Below, we break down the three primary mentoring models, explore how to match them to your context, and evaluate key considerations for building an Inclusion Strategy across Primary, Secondary, and Alternative Provision settings.
Comparing the Three Mentoring Models
To align your spend and Inclusion Strategy effectively, you must balance capacity, expertise, and pupil need.
Model A: Peer Mentoring (Pupil-to-Pupil)
- Best Suited For: Universal inclusion, transition support, low-level anxiety, social skills, and building a whole-school culture of belonging.
- Pros:
- High Scalability: Cost-effective and capable of reaching a large volume of pupils quickly.
- Relational Power: Young people often open up more readily to peers than to adults; it breaks down social barriers.
- Dual Benefit: Mentors develop leadership, empathy, and active listening skills, benefiting both parties.
- Cons:
- Limited Scope: Unsuitable for complex behavioral needs, deep trauma, or severe SEND.
- Safeguarding Risks: Requires rigorous, ongoing adult supervision to prevent boundary blurring or secondary trauma in peer mentors.
- Key Strategic Considerations:
- Do you have the staff capacity to train, match, and continually supervise pupil mentors?
- How will you manage confidentiality while maintaining robust safeguarding procedures?
(See our Case Study of the programme we delivered with The Complete Education Solution to learn more.)
Model B: Mentoring-Informed Teachers & Staff (Basic Introduction)
- Best Suited For: Strengthening Universal (Tier 1) provision, improving classroom relationships, early identification of need, and targeted pastoral check-ins.
- Pros:
- Systemic Cultural Shift: Normalises relational, mental health led interactions in every classroom across the school.
- Cost-Efficient CPD: Upskilling existing staff maximises your existing budget without requiring new hires.
- Proactive Support: Teachers spot early indicators of disengagement or emotional distress and apply targeted mentoring frameworks during registration, tutor time, or practical lessons.
- Cons:
- Time Constraints: Teachers have limited capacity outside of instructional hours to deliver structured, sustained 1:1 sessions.
- Role Confusion: Staff may struggle to switch between the authoritative/instructional role of a teacher and the non-judgmental role of a mentor.
- Key Strategic Considerations:
- Can you dedicate timetable space (e.g., non-contact time or extended form time) for these interactions to happen meaningfully?
- Will staff feel equipped to manage disclosures without reverting immediately to purely disciplinary measures?
Model C: Fully Trained Internal Mentors (Dedicated Specialists)
- Best Suited For: Targeted (Tier 2) and Specialist (Tier 3) provision, severe attendance barriers, pupils at risk of exclusion, and complex SEMH needs.
- Pros:
- High Impact & Depth: Dedicated professionals equipped to handle complex SEMH needs, emotionally based school avoidance (EBSA), and significant behavioural challenges.
- Protected Time: Uninterrupted focus on 1:1 and small-group interventions without classroom teaching duties competing for their schedule.
- Measurable Outcomes: High-level mentors can track granular behavioural, emotional, and engagement metrics to demonstrate clear ROI for your Inclusion Strategy and IMF reporting.
- Cons:
- Resource Intensive: Requires significant financial investment in specialist training, and ongoing supervision.
- Risk of Over-Dependence: Pupils can become overly reliant on a single specialist mentor if re-integration plans into mainstream classes aren’t clearly structured.
- Key Strategic Considerations:
- How will your dedicated mentors collaborate with your SENCO, DSL, and external agencies to ensure wrap-around care?
- What explicit metrics will you use to evaluate when a pupil is ready to “step down” from specialist mentoring?
Choosing the Right Approach for Your Setting
Your setting determines your school’s daily rhythms, staffing structures, and developmental needs. Here are some examples of how mentoring approaches can perform as part of an Inclusion Strategy across different environments:
| Setting | Recommended Primary Model | Secondary Focus | Key Contextual Considerations |
| Primary Schools | Mentoring-Informed Staff supported by targeted Peer Mentors (e.g., Playground Buddies). | Fully Trained Mentors deployed across clusters or shared multi-academy trust (MAT) hubs. | Primary children rely heavily on secure adult attachments. Mentoring-informed TAs and teachers maintain daily stability. Peer buddy systems work brilliantly for break-time social inclusion. |
| Secondary Schools | Hybrid Model: Universal Peer Mentoring + Fully Trained Dedicated Mentors for Tier 2/3. | Mentoring-informed Form Tutors holding weekly 15-minute relational check-ins. | Secondary settings require structured interventions that fit around subject timetables. Peer mentoring eases Year 7 transition, while dedicated mentors reduce persistent absence and suspension rates. |
| Alternative Provision (AP) & PRUs | Fully Trained Specialist Mentors embedded across all operations. | Mentoring-informed vocational and academic teaching staff. | In AP settings, relational practice is the core curriculum. Every staff member needs advanced mentoring skills, backed by dedicated mentors who lead on family engagement and reintegration pathways. |
| Special Schools | Fully Trained Mentors working alongside specialist multidisciplinary teams (OT, SALT, CAMHS). | Mentoring-informed support staff focused on communication and self-regulation. | Focus shifts from pure academic mentoring to emotional regulation, life-skills transition, and building functional communication pathways for neurodivergent learners. |
Aligning Your Choice with the Inclusive Mainstream Fund (IMF) Priorities
To ensure your chosen approach aligns with your Inclusion Strategy and stands up to scrutiny from governors, local authorities, and inspectors, your mentoring provision must align directly with key IMF criteria:
- Predictable Need vs. Reactive Firefighting: Don’t wait for crisis points. A strong Inclusion Strategy uses Mentoring-Informed Teachers at Tier 1 to catch early signs of distress, reserving Fully Trained Mentors for planned Tier 2/3 interventions.
- Co-Production & Pupil Voice: Peer mentoring models explicitly embody co-production by giving young people an active role in shaping a supportive school culture.
- Evidencing Impact: Funding streams demand clear proof of efficacy. Dedicated mentors provide the operational bandwidth to track key performance indicators, such as reduction in internal isolation hours, improved attendance metrics, and Boxall-profile progress.
Next Steps for School Leaders
Building an Inclusion Strategy is not about choosing the easiest option; it is about matching the level of mentoring expertise to the specific needs of your cohort.
- Audit your current capacity: Where do your biggest inclusion gaps lie – in universal classroom culture, break-time regulation, or complex 1:1 SEMH support?
- Consider a phased rollout: Many successful schools begin by upskilling key pastoral staff with robust mentor training, before building out peer-mentoring frameworks led by those newly trained staff.
Ready to embed mentoring within your setting?
If you’re ready to support student mental health and wellbeing in a more targeted way, explore our options for specialised mentor training:
Children’s Mentor Qualification for Primary Schools
Young Person Mentor Qualification for Secondary and Further Education
Looking for something more tailored?
The Mentoring School is proud to work with students and settings from Early Years to University. Book a call with our team and we can design a package to suit your requirements.