Children and young people may experience a wide range of social and emotional difficulties which manifest themselves in many ways. This page outlines some ways in which social, emotional and mental health needs may present at the Targeted + Level of the Graduated Approach.

Needs Descriptors

Emotional Health and Wellbeing

• Social and emotional difficulties will be extreme and present persistent barriers to learning.
• The child or young person may regularly seem extremely unhappy or anxious.
• The child or young person may regularly become overwhelmed in the school environment and may need reassurance.
• The child or young person may regularly demonstrate school avoiding behaviours, they may be becoming a persistent absentee. For example, undiagnosed illnesses.
• The child or young person may have ongoing difficulties with self-regulation which impacts in their ability to cope in their setting and the functioning of others.
• The child or young person may not want to be in the classroom on regular basis for known or unknown reasons.
• The child or young person may regularly require support and finds waiting for help difficult in some situations.
• The child or young person may regularly struggle to find solutions to problems.
• The child or young person may persistently struggle to engage with tasks.
• The child or young person struggles to access strategies to manage their emotions and responses to the environment and change.
• The child or young person may need substantial support to co-regulate.
• The child or young person often requires support to functionally communicate their needs when they are dysregulated.
• The child or young person may show regular signs of emotional dysregulation for example at times of change, or due to frustration.

Social Behaviour

• The child or young person may regularly struggle to follow rules.
• The child or young person may use language that is harmful to other people. They may or may not know that is the case.
• The child or young person's inability to cope may present as harmful behaviours such as: hitting, punching, kicking, biting slapping, spitting, hair pulling, including other behaviours that have a negative impact on the student), that are not due to other causes.
• The child or young person may develop risky survival strategies for example, self-harm, running out of classroom/school, climbing at height on property/furniture.
• The child or young person may use dangerous avoidance strategies when finding situations too challenging, for example, harm to self or others.
• The child or young person may need significant amount of support to interact with others appropriately.
• The learner can become distressed/withdrawn when faced with change (such as new people, places, events, or unplanned changes of routine), uncertainty and transitions, particularly if it affects any repetitive behaviours or rituals they may have.
• The child or young person may have difficulties understanding and recognising personal, social, environmental and physical risks and their own vulnerabilities.
• The child or young person may have limited body awareness and may cause risk to self and/or others in attempts to seek, or avoid, sensory input or regulation.

Relationships

• In social situations the child or young person may become overwhelmed and withdraw, or self-isolate regularly.
• The child or young person may demonstrate ongoing separation difficulties.
• The child or young person may have extreme difficulties in making and maintaining relationships.
• The child or young person may become socially isolated and vulnerable, with disengagement from education, social and family life.
• The child or young person needs substantial support to be able to reflect on how their actions impact on others.

Links

• Removing Social, Emotional and Mental Health Barriers
• Training and Resources

 

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