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Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs): Targeted support

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What might this look like?  

Children and young people who find it more difficult to feel safe and secure and to remain regulated in school because they have been exposed to adverse experiences. Children and young people living in a currently challenging situation are likely to show a ‘fight, flight, freeze’ stress response whenever they experience something that feels threatening to them. 

Education services

In school support

  • Sessions with a trained member of staff such as an Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA), Educational Psychology Assistant, counsellor or member of the pastoral team to address worries and to develop coping strategies  

  • For further information about ELSA training visit the Cognus website [External link]

  • Consideration of a referral into the SEND Support Advisory Partnership (SSAP) for advice and resources for pupils at SEND Support. See more information on the Cognus website [External link] 

Vulnerable Pupil Panel

  • The Vulnerable Pupils Panel  (VPP) is a multi-agency partnership which can be referred into by school staff to provide support, advice and guidance for vulnerable child and young people where there is a concern about risk of exclusion or poor attendance. View the VPP terms of reference here [External link]

  • The Turnaround Programme is a preventative project which runs for four weeks, supporting students from external schools who are at risk of permanent exclusion. This can be referred into via the VPP and is delivered by The Limes 

  • Outreach, nurture or respite can also be provided by The Limes to prevent exclusion for primary aged pupils which would be arranged through the VPP 

Sutton Virtual School

Cognus Inclusion Team

  • Inclusion Surgeries run every week Tuesday afternoon and Friday morning for any member of school staff to provide information, advice, and guidance to schools to support inclusive practice and the prevention of exclusion. To book onto the Inclusion Surgery, please complete the booking form [External Link]. 

Social care services

Family Hubs

  • Family Hubs provide parent/carer Coffee Information Sessions. If you would like to find out more about the sessions, please contact Clare Kennedy Parenting Administrator via her email: clare.kennedy@sutton.gov.uk 

  • A range of parent/carer training programmes, support sessions and information which can be found in our directory  

Early Help  

  • Advice and signposting from an Early Help Coordinator  

  • Referral into the Helping Early Panel which is a multi-agency partnership that aims to support children, young people, and families in Sutton by providing early intervention and prevention services. It focuses on identifying and addressing needs early on to prevent issues from escalating and to improve outcomes for children and families. Referral can only be completed by professionals (not schools)  

  • For professional support or guidance on referrals, you can contact the Early Help Coordinators at 020 8770 6001 For more information please visit the Targeted Early Help directory page

Early Help & Integrated Youth Justice Service (EHIYJS) | Schools Team

This service is only available for secondary schools with an assigned worker 

  • Individual pupil work for young people who are becoming disengaged with education 

  • Workshops for groups of pupil 

  • For more information please contact Paul Arthur, Team Manager paul.arthur@sutton.gov.uk, telephone 07395 283151 or Laura Noulton, Service Manager 07970955105.

Sutton Therapeutic Hub

_This service is only available to children/young people and families open to Sutton’s Children’s Services _ 

  • Therapeutic Hub practitioners work with children and young people to assess and understand their needs, and those of the parents/ carers. Where appropriate, they may then offer therapeutic interventions. 

  • Parent/carer coffee morning sessions jointly run by the Virtual School and Therapeutic Hub  

Integrated Youth Services

  • The Integrated Youth Service is a new service formed from the existing partnership of the Targeted Youth Support and Youth Offending Teams. The service is based at The Quad in Carshalton and is for young people from ages 11-18

  • All services offered require a referral via Social Care, Early Help or the Vulnerable Pupils Panel. 

Health services

Education Wellbeing Service SWLSTG/Cognus

  • Guided self-help for anxiety or low mood

  • 1:1 Parenting support for managing a child's anxiety and behaviour 

  • Therapeutic groups including creative therapies (limited to the cluster of schools operating within the St Philomena’s Cluster) 

  • Therapy focused on addressing trauma needs including Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) (limited to the cluster of schools operating within the St Philomena’s Cluster) 

  • Reflective consultation slots for school staff  

  • For more information about this service or to request training and support contact your schools Mental Health Lead. To find out who is your linked worker please email EWSinfo@swlstg.nhs.uk or see the SWLSTG website [External link]. For schools who are part of the team linked to Cognus see further information on the Cognus website [External link] 

Sutton Alliance services – Tier 2  

School nursing  

  • Sutton School nursing offers regular confidential drop in clinics in Sutton Secondary schools providing support and guidance on both physical health and emotional well-being. Visit them on their instagram page  Instagram.com/suttonschoolnursing/[External link]

  • If you would like to see a member of the team, they can be contacted: By phone on 020 8770 5409. By email at hcpadmin@sutton.gov.uk or through the school a pupil attends. You can also get further information by visiting the Sutton Information by visiting the Sutton School Nursing page in our directory  

Voluntary/Community services

MAPS Mentoring

Jigsaw4u

  • Piece of Mind therapeutic support on an outreach basis for 11 – 24-year-olds across South West London who are experiencing depression and anxiety. You can self-refer or be referred through by a parent/carer or professional visit the Jigsaw4u website for more information [External link] 

  • Therapeutic Life Story Work for 4 – 18 year olds who are adopted or under a special guardianship order. Referrals can be made and the service commissioned by a social care professional on the Jigsaw4u website [External Link] 

  • Play therapy on an outreach basis for 5 – 10-year-olds across South West London who have been affected by Domestic Abuse. For more information about commissioning this service on the Jigsaw4u website [External link]

Need even more support?

Specialist Support


Specialist Support