Trauma

Trauma

Trauma refers to experiences that are so distressing or overwhelming that they affect a pupil’s ability to cope. These experiences can have a lasting impact on their emotional, physical, and mental wellbeing. Trauma can occur at any age and may involve events that feel frightening, dangerous, or violent.

For younger children especially, their sense of safety depends heavily on consistent, caring relationships with adults—such as parents, carers, or trusted school staff. When that sense of safety is disrupted, it can deeply affect how they feel and behave.

Children and young people respond to trauma in different ways. Some may show clear signs, while others may mask their distress. As school staff, it’s important to be aware of the possible indicators so you can offer appropriate support.

Recognizing trauma-related behaviors helps staff respond with empathy rather than discipline. A trauma-informed approach creates a safer, more supportive school environment where pupils can begin to heal and thrive.

Presenting Barriers and Challenges

• Heightened anxiety or fear – appearing overly worried or jumpy
• Difficulty regulating emotions – needing adult help to calm down or manage feelings
• Social withdrawal – avoiding peers or group activities
• Physical symptoms – frequent stomach aches, headaches, or accidents (e.g., loss of bladder/bowel control)
• Controlling behaviors – trying to manage situations or people to feel safer
• Trouble concentrating – struggling to focus, follow instructions, or stay engaged
• Feeling unsafe in school – expressing discomfort or fear in the school environment

Examples of Provision and Strategies

Planning and Communication

• Liaise with parents or carers: Create a shared understanding of the learner’s experience and use this information to proactively plan support.
• Use the Attachment Regulation and Competency (ARC) Framework: Help create conditions for success.
• Long-term support: Be aware that supporting a learner with an experience of trauma is a long-term process. Provision and support may need to be revisited in different ways over time as needs diminish, evolve, or re-emerge.
• Subtle support: Be aware that the learner may say they do not want the support offered—this doesn’t always mean that they don’t need it. Seek to support in more subtle ways, but do not withdraw support.

Compassionate Relationships

• Support adults to be regulated themselves.
• Communicate 'felt safety': Use awareness of tone of voice, facial expressions, body language, and proximity.
• Get to know the learner well: Learn their likes, dislikes, and use pupil voice to connect.
• Check-ins: Include warm morning greetings and regular check-ins during classroom activities.
• Use the ‘Being kept in Mind’ strategy: For example, "I’ll be thinking of you."
• Be attuned to the learner: Recognize and respond in a caring manner to their emotional needs. For example, "I wonder if XXXX," or "I noticed XXXX."
• Use genuine empathy: For example, "I understand XXXX," or "I know this is hard," before redirecting the learner to an activity or action.

Co-regulation/Emotion Coaching

• Use PACE: Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity, and Empathy.
• Use narratives and commentaries: Support the learner’s understanding of situations/emotions. For example, "I wonder if XXXX," or "I think XXXX."
• Use restorative approaches: Focus on repairing relationships rather than sanctions (e.g., verbal, visual, acts of kindness, Comic Strip Conversations, Role-Play).
• Build a Team Around the Learner: Ensure one adult is a clear advocate for the pupil.

Understanding and Responding to Needs

• Understand the five survival responses to trauma: Flight, Fight, Freeze, Flop, and Fawn.
• Understand different styles of insecure attachment/relationships.
• Respond to basic needs: Ensure food/refreshments and manage tiredness levels.
• Use inclusive, respectful language: Avoid shame and state what you need to happen. For example, "We need to XXXX."
• Identify and respond to sensory needs.
• Provide quiet/comfortable spaces: Ensure these are communicated and offered in the classroom.
• Routines and predictability: Use visual timetables, Now and Next Boards, and transition routines such as a countdown system.
• Pre-coach known changes: Prepare the learner in advance.
• Teach emotions: Help learners understand their physical sensations and feelings to develop coping mechanisms (e.g., Zones of Regulation, Emotion Coaching).
• Be aware of key times of the year: Approach anniversaries, Mother’s Day/Father’s Day, birthdays, or Christmas sensitively, providing additional support, reassurance, and alternative tasks where appropriate.