Inclusion in mainstream schools – supporting pupils, parents and staff
When a child is finding school difficult, understanding what is happening for them is a good place to start. Anxiety, friendship difficulties, overwhelm and worries about change can all affect how able a young person feels to attend, participate and learn.
At Well Connections, we work alongside schools to provide counselling and practical wellbeing support for pupils, parents and staff. We build relationships with the school team and bring in practitioners who understand the needs of their community.
What schools need to consider
Schools in England receiving the Inclusive Mainstream Fund must publish an inclusion strategy by 31 December 2026, explaining the barriers pupils face and how their planned activities and spending will address them. The guidance encourages early support without waiting for a formal diagnosis or assessment. (gov.uk)
For schools planning that support, it helps to consider what is needed around the child as well as the individual help they might benefit from.
Helping parents feel more confident
We have delivered parent workshops around anxiety and emotionally based school avoidance, often called EBSA. These offer space to understand what may be happening for a child and explore practical ways to respond at home.
A one-off parent session can give families a useful starting point, with shared language and ideas they can take away.
For schools wanting more sustained support, we can also discuss a six-week EBSA pilot, shaped around an agreed group of families. The proposed approach brings together parent support, input for relevant school staff and agreed follow-up, with feedback and review built in.
The starting point is understanding what is making attendance difficult for each child and helping school and home work together on manageable next steps.
Workshops around everyday school life
Our wider work has included transition workshops helping pupils explore worries, recognise their strengths and prepare for change, alongside staff sessions around wellbeing and work-life balance.
The right combination will look different in each school. It might be regular counselling, a one-off parent workshop, a focused pilot or support for staff.
We take time to understand what is already in place and where additional help would be useful, then agree an approach that fits the school’s priorities and budget.
We also offer Counselling within school
At one of the North Yorkshire secondary schools we work with, regular counselling sits alongside the school’s pastoral and safeguarding provision. Pupils have access to a consistent practitioner, with regular communication and reviews helping the service respond to emerging needs.
At a Harrogate independent school we work with, counselling is complemented by wider wellbeing activity, including workshops for pupils and staff. Across its 2025–26 programme, 93% of pupils showed improvement in wellbeing and/or their experience of counselling.
We also provide anonymised reporting so school leaders can understand engagement, outcomes and the themes emerging from the support.
To talk through support for your school, contact [email protected] or .Book an intro call here : https://wellconnections.co.uk/book/intro-call