Zippy arrives in Norway

The expansion of Zippy's Friends to more countries has continued with the first teacher training course in Norway taking place last month.

Five schools will take part in a Norwegian pilot study from September. They are from the Winter Olympics town of Lillehammer and from the west coast port of Stavanger.

Teachers from both areas travelled to Oslo for the training course, which was organised by Voksne for Barn, the agency responsible for co-ordinating Zippy's Friends in Norway. Voksne for Barn is one of the country's most respected non-governmental agencies and has been working to improve the mental health of Norwegian children and adolescents for more than 40 years.

The education of six year old children in Norway is less formal and more democratic than in many other countries, and there is less emphasis on academic achievement. Teachers are well aware of the importance of helping children to develop fully.

Co-ordinator Nina Grindheim explained that, although many of its underlying concepts are well-known to Norwegian teachers, Zippy's Friends appeals to them because it brings everything together in one structured and tested programme.

'It was very good to have Partnership for Children's trainers here because they were able to share ideas with us from schools and teachers in other countries,' said Nina. 'It was clear from our teachers' feedback that they really appreciated this international approach.'

The launch of Zippy's Friends in Norway is particularly pleasing for Mette Ystgaard, an associate professor at the University of Oslo and now a trustee of Partnership for Children. She was involved in the initial design of the programme seven years ago and, together with Prof Brian Mishara from Canada, conducted two major evaluation studies of its implementation and impact in Denmark and Lithuania.

'I've long dreamed of the day when Zippy's Friends would be launched in my home country,' said Mette, 'but it has been important to find a partner agency that is really enthusiastic about the programme and has the strength and experience to deliver it to children across Norway. Voksne for Barn meets all these criteria.'

In addition to teachers, a number of health workers and educational psychologists also attended the course. They will be involved in supporting the teachers.

The launch in Norway will mean that Zippy's Friends is running in six countries. A seventh - Canada - will begin shortly, and discussions are now well advanced for training teachers and starting classes in another three countries. In addition, the number of children enrolled in the programme in England, India and Lithuania is expected to grow substantially from September.