Social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs are a type of special educational needs in which children and young people have difficulties in managing their emotions and behaviour. They may often show inappropriate responses and feelings to situations.
This means that they may have trouble in building and maintaining relationships with peers and adults; they may also struggle to engage with learning and to cope in the classroom without additional strategies and interventions. Children with SEMH will often feel anxious, scared and misunderstood.
Typical characteristics of children with SEMH can include:
- Disruptive, antisocial and uncooperative behaviour
- Temper tantrums
- Frustration, anger and verbal and physical threats/aggression
- Withdrawn and depressed attitudes
- Anxiety and self-harm
- Stealing
- Truancy
- Vandalism
- Drug abuse
- Setting fires
SEMH does not have to be a lifelong condition. With appropriate support children and young people can move forward and live successful lives.
Key Principles for supporting SEMH:
- Adults should show curiosity and wondering aloud about the presenting behaviour and
should model the use of restorative language, problem solving and behaviours we want to
see.
- A team of families and professionals should work together to support the child/young
person at school, in the community and at home.
- Provide positive role modelling and implement the SEND Pledge Values to support
preparing for adulthood at the earliest opportunity.
- Engage parents/ carers in regular dialogue and support home school agreements.
- All children and young people should be greeted/welcomed into the setting.
- Behaviour to be often seen as communication.
Strategic leadership will support SEMH needs by:
- Senior leaders across the partnership to identify patterns and themes with curiosity so that
changes can be made to better support this needs.
- Senior leaders to review and monitor curriculum offered in terms of quality of teaching and
appropriateness of the curriculum.
- School leaders should ensure that all staff are given time to read and plan for the identified
needs of children and young people within their setting.
- School leaders designate roles and responsibilities within the school for SEMH, giving an
equal balance to all aspects of Social, Emotional and Mental Health needs. This includes
sharing knowledge and training for staff as appropriate.
- A chronology must be created of low-level presenting concerns. This should contribute to
systemic analysis, planning and action for children and young people.
- Making reasonable adjustments to the implementation of school policies and procedures to
support the young person; communicating and monitoring this to the wider staff team.
- Behavioural expectations and responses must be subject to adaptation and reasonable
adjustment (Equalities Act) in line with the child/young person’s SEND and with contextual
safeguarding in mind.
Every school, health setting, social worker and community support worker will:
- Adapt and adjust behavioural expectations and responses to meet the child/young person’s SEND and contextual safeguarding in mind.
- Provide positive role modelling and implementation of the Pledge to support preparing for adulthood at the earliest opportunity.
- Engage parents/carers in regular dialogue and support all partners’ work.
- Welcome all children and young people into their settings and services.
- Provide emotional check-in before the formal start of the day and repeat this when needed.
- Recognise that children and young people with SEMH may find all transition points challenging and will need support to regulate (moving between classes, beginning and end of the day, change of teacher).
- Identify the push and pull factors – those factors that may lead to or discourage presenting behaviours. These may include previous interactions, anxiety, peer responses, environmental and other factors.
- Support children to plan with their families and professionals how best to support their needs.
- Ensure all staff are aware of the pupil, their needs and appropriate strategies and responses.
- Clearly identify what may have contributed to the presenting behaviour, showing curiosity and wondering aloud.
- Review and monitor the curriculum offered in terms of quality of teaching and appropriateness.
- Leaders should ensure that all staff are given time to read and plan for the identified needs of children and young people within their setting.
- Where appropriate children and young people to emotionally check in with a trusted adult before the formal start of the day and understand how to do that when needed. An example of an emotional check-in could be going through their visual timetable, preparing them for any changes in the day,
- Staff in schools will need to recognise that children and young people with social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH) may find transition points challenging and will need support to regulate (moving between classes, beginning and end of the day, change of teacher)
- Identify the push and pull factors (to include in a possible support plan). (Those factors that may lead to or discourage presenting behaviours) These may include previous interactions, anxiety, peer responses, environmental and other factors.
- Every child with identified SEMH needs should have a ‘live’ child centred one-page profile/passport document to support all staff in understanding their need. With senior staff/SENCO/DSL/all teaching and learning staff having a working knowledge of the pupil, their needs and appropriate strategies and responses in their one-page profile/passport.
- Support by appropriate adults to implement the strategies in their plan.
- All adults in the setting will work with the child/young person to identify and improve provision as part of proactive rather than reactive intervention.
- Short term adaptations may need to be made to accommodate emerging needs e.g. check ins/out throughout the day, structured support at lunch time and social time, reflection time, calming start of day.
- Effectively promoting peer support systems which is safe and effective for all involved. e.g. peer mentors, playground friends etc.
- Reflection and restorative repair to be offered to allow adults and the child or young person to learn from the behaviours.
- Use of restorative language. Avoidance of shaming behaviours and language.
- Supportive recognition and monitoring of attendance through the school attendance support team.
Targeted SEND support strategies or interventions
The needs of some children/young people may require.
Positive Support Plan:
- Draw up a Positive Support Plan (PSP) that meets the needs of children and young people, helping them to independently recognise and manage their own challenges with positive strategies along with their parents/carers.
- Identification of trigger points/challenges where possible and plan so they can be supported and managed.
- Consideration of adaptations to curriculum provision and timetable
- Identifying tools and strategies relevant for the child/young person.
- Individual support programmes of strategies/support and intervention co-produced with children/young people, families and colleagues which is monitored and reviewed and applied across all environments consistently.
- Delivery of small group interventions as appropriate.
- Include any Safe Holding support the child or young person may need in consultation with parents/carers.
- Implementing the recommendations into the positive behaviour support plan
- Seeking external advice from health, social care and education outreach through referral.
- Informal discussions with external agencies to consider options/ next steps.
Suggestions for the SENCO
- Ensure increased dialogue with parents/ carers.
- Create family transition plans to ensure families can support transition.
- Assess, plan, do, review.
- Monitoring the impact of intervention.
- Identifying those early SEMH needs when they show early signs of escalating
- Schools should have regular involvement of external agencies. Make referrals to appropriate external agencies and act on recommendations (ideally with consent).
- Include parents/carers in the creation of the relational care plan
- Ensure key record keeping is in place (and connected to other support plans) to support the child or young person e.g., ABC records, Personalised Learning Plans.
- Organise interventions (e.g., anger management, CBT, draw and talk) for a specific and measurable period and then monitor and review impact.
- Organise resources and identify training needs
- Upskill staff in the needs of SEMH young people
- Ensure appropriate level of involvement of specialist pastoral staff e.g. Intervention for Thrive, SEAL, ELSA.
- Implement effective transition programmes between phases and providers.
- Consider individualised programme of work based on child’s interests
- Consider partnership provision with alternative curriculum providers
- Organise individualised programmes e.g., adapted timetables, added provision outside the classroom, etc.
- Consider the appropriateness of a managed move or Section 29 direction
- Bring case for peer support at the relevant risk of exclusion meeting
Assessment tools
There is a wide range of assessment tools and devices. The list below is not exhaustive but is indicative. Settings should use a consistent set of tools.
- Boxall, Motional, Thrive
- Reach to Teach, SDQ
- Talk about assessment, GL – emotional resilience tool
- Qualitative assessment measures and pupil voice measures.
Service offer or referral pathway