Launch of Affecting Change; Therapeutic Education

Monday 17th March.... The first day of my journey to support children, families and schools..... After working in main stream schools for 20 years I have witnessed the increase in children struggling to attend school, for a variety of reasons.

I have witnessed the struggle that schools are having, to meet the needs of their children and be the punching bag for the media and be portrayed as failing. Children, families and schools are in need of support

"More than 140,000 schoolchildren in England were officially "severely absent" in the summer term of 2022, according to official Department of Education figures - and the number of these pupils, missing at least 50% of classes, is growing."

This statement has been picked up and written about in a wide variety of newspaper articles. They are being coined as 'The Ghost Children'. Terri White, has investigated into this matter, you can read about it on the BBC website or listen on BBC sounds. Schools need to make sure that they are safeguarding all students and if these students are not in school, how do they ensure that they are safe? How are staff able to support the students in school as well with all the increasing mental health needs and visit pupils at home and provide the best possible care for the students who can't attend school? What support is out there to provide the right education and support for these 140,000 children? Services are stretched and if there are no immediate safeguarding issues children services can't support families, specialised school provisions are full and waiting lists are long for mental health services.

As I start my journey I look forward to supporting many other people on the start of their journey to returning to the classroom or suitable setting. Throughout this process I will also keep reading and learning, continually developing my understanding of trauma, SEND and neurodiversity, so I am best placed to help as many children, families and schools as possible.

An exciting day for me tomorrow.