School bridge officer appears to be proven effective

A bridge officer can be compared to a (school) social worker, who builds a bridge between the school and home environment of students, especially for students from vulnerable home situations. The bridge officer deals with a wide range of issues, including poverty, care, and education. A “bridge officer” is approachable in a low-threshold manner and builds a relationship of trust with pupils and parents/caregivers. This allows him/her to identify problems early on, offer extra help or support and, if necessary, refer them to the appropriate agencies. Following in the footsteps of Ghent, Belgium, Groningen began deploying bridge officers as early as 2011. Zaandam followed in 2019, and in 2022, on the initiative of the Youth Education Fund and the Equal Opportunities Alliance, twenty elementary schools throughout the Netherlands started using a bridge officer. Currently, over 1,100 schools in the Netherlands have a bridge officer thanks to a three-year government subsidy. About 780 of those schools are affiliated with the Youth Education Fund, which advises and supports the schools.

Positive effects on students, families and the school

Education Lab NL, a research group within the Research Center for Research and the Labor Market (ROA), investigated the effects of bridge officers in elementary schools. “Students in vulnerable situations really benefit from the help of bridge officers,” says Prof. Inge de Wolf, professor of ‘Co-creation and Evaluation in Education’ and director of Education Lab. “They are helped with basic needs such as food, clothing and school supplies, have less stress, behave better in class, are in school more often and therefore come to learning better.”

For the children's environment, the use of the bridge officer also provides benefits. “Teachers, internal supervisors and school leaders are relieved, and teachers, therefore, get more to their primary task of teaching. This benefits all students, and it leads to greater job satisfaction and less teacher absenteeism. Moreover, timely identification of problems often prevents worse. This prevents heavy and costly care or assistance programs for both children and parents.”

Cost-benefit analysis

The researchers also looked at the costs and benefits of bridge officers. They concluded that both in the short and long term, the use of bridge officers produces profits. “A bridge officer costs money, but returns its money more than once,” said Hans Spekman, director of the Youth Education Fund. “In this time of teacher shortages, relieving teachers is the main prize. Teachers can spend more time on math and language, and that gives students a solid foundation for now and later.”

There are, however, significant differences between schools in the perceived effectiveness of bridge officers. The role, tasks, positioning and experience differ between schools. Hans Spekman on this: “If you do it, do it well. The bridge officer should be part of the team and the school, and it is important to hire the right people based on the right job description. Therefore, the next step could be to include the bridge officer in the education collective bargaining agreement. By doing so, you give the bridge officer the permanent position in education where he belongs.”