Our Impact

At the Child Therapy Service, our work is grounded in a simple principle: when children are understood through a regulation, sensory, and neurodivergent-affirming lens, outcomes improve.

Across families, schools, specialist settings, and professional services, we focus on early identification, practical evidence-based interventions, and measurable tools to track impact.

The examples below illustrate how this approach is being implemented in practice – from national prevention initiatives and professional training to whole-school support and family programmes.

They demonstrate how Clarity → Action → Support leads to earlier identification, more effective support, increased confidence for adults, and improved outcomes for children and young people.

White Hall Academy is located in an area of recognised deprivation, supporting many pupils affected by adverse childhood experiences and complex emotional needs. In September 2021, the school entered a funded partnership with Child Therapy Service to respond to increasing SEMH needs across the school community.

What was delivered

Whole-school consultation and staff training, delivery of the Grounding Programme including assessment tools and daily regulation activities, termly consultation for staff and leadership teams, and a resource bank to support consistent practice across the setting.

What changed

Emotional regulation scores improved across the targeted pupils. Staff reported calmer mornings, smoother transitions into learning and stronger relationships between pupils and LSAs. Pupil confidence, communication and readiness to learn all increased over the course of the project.

Children described the grounding sessions as “special time.”

The school continued and expanded the intervention into 2022–2023 – the clearest indicator that the approach was working.

In their words

“It was good to have pointers and ideas to adapt and expand on.” – LSA, White Hall Academy

“I like being 1:1 with the LSA when we do our grounding work.” – Year 3 pupil, White Hall Academy

What this tells us

A regulation-first approach, consistently delivered and reviewed, produced observable change in some of the most complex children in the school – in an area where need is high and resources are stretched. Grounding and sensory-based strategies are now embedded across the school day.

John Grant School is a large special school supporting children with severe and complex needs. The school began with a single portal subscription before expanding to a whole-school licence – a decision driven by the direct relevance and impact of the training and resources on everyday practice.

What changed

Staff understanding of behaviour as communication improved across the setting. Confidence in supporting emotional regulation increased. Practical resources became embedded within classrooms, and training began directly informing how staff responded to children in real moments – not just in theory.

In their words

“The site is invaluable for training as well as resources. The interventions have helped staff understand that behaviour is not defiance, but communication.” – Heidi Alexander, Deputy Headteacher, John Grant School

What this tells us

When training is accessible, practical and relevant to the children in front of staff, it gets used. John Grant School’s decision to expand from one subscription to a whole-school licence was made by a leadership team who saw the difference it was making in their classrooms – and wanted every member of staff to have the same foundation.

Between 2021 and 2023, the Child Therapy Service delivered regular online coffee mornings for parents and carers of children experiencing emotionally based school avoidance, anxiety, and PDA profiles. Sessions were small, structured, and safe – designed to reduce isolation as much as to provide information.

Reach

Over 420 families were supported across monthly Zoom sessions over two years.

What changed

Families felt heard, supported, and understood. When you are a parent of a child struggling to cope with school, manage change, or meet everyday demands, life becomes smaller.

Sessions were led by Tracy, Founder of the Child Therapy Service, and someone who has been in these families’ shoes – that made the difference: someone who understood, not just to hold the space but to support.

In their words

“Tracey’s online coffee mornings have been a lifesaver for me — just to know I’m not the only one struggling, to hear other people’s stories and offer one another encouragement and hope.” – Katie MacGregor

“I am not sure how I would have survived the last year without the help and understanding I received. It allowed me not just to understand my son’s struggles but my own childhood struggles that I never fully addressed. With strategies suggested by Tracy and her caring attitude, I am improving my own mental and emotional health as well as that of my son.” – Elzbieta Pecka

What this tells us

Families of children with social and emotional needs are often left feeling isolated and misunderstood. When they are given access to safe, informed, non-judgemental support – the ripple effect reaches the child, the school, and the wider family.

This work shaped how the Child Therapy Service now supports families through personal coaching, access to the Learning Portal live drop-in sessions, and ongoing live chat on the site.

In 2022, Child Therapy Service delivered a funded project supporting families of children experiencing tactile defensiveness — a sensory difficulty that often presents as significant distress around clothing, touch, and everyday physical contact, including school uniform.

The project explored a specific question: could parent-led, regulation-based somatic strategies reduce sensory distress?

Outcomes

8 families participated; 6 completed the full programme.

Of those who engaged fully, 67% reported clear reductions in tactile distress.

Children showed increased tolerance for everyday clothing and activities. Families reported calmer daily routines, reduced escalation, increased child autonomy, and improved participation in everyday life.

In their words

“We have already had great success in a short period of time using her easy techniques to tackle tactile defensiveness. We are excited to keep going and learn how similar techniques can help with other difficulties.” – Jo and David Wainewright

“The benefit it has had on us has been amazing. The information, clear guidance and support is brilliant — wholeheartedly recommend giving it a try.” – Maxine Hoad

“The range of support that Tracy offers, combined with her lived experience, is what sets her apart in my opinion.” – Vikki Kelly

What this tells us

Somatic-based strategies can reduce tactile defensiveness. As a result, these strategies were recorded as mini videos and are now accessible in the Learning Portal for any parent to use.

Alongside this, the Tactile Defensiveness Project webinar walks through the full process.

National Snapshot Impact Project – launched 2026

In 2026, Child Therapy Service launched a national Snapshot Impact Project across education, health, and social care settings.

The project is built around a straightforward premise: when early identification is embedded into everyday practice, SEMH risk is reduced — not because professionals become more vigilant, but because they have a clear, structured way of seeing what is actually happening for a child before it escalates into crisis.

Grounded in the BOUNCE Approach®, Snapshots provide a structured two-minute baseline of how a child or young person is managing right now – within their current environment, expectations, and support.

They give adults a way to pause, gain clarity, and then respond with tools available in the portal before the situation escalates into poor attendance, increased EHCP needs, or CAMHS waiting lists.

What is being tracked

Settings are participating across education, health and social care. Impact is being measured across five areas: wellbeing, regulation, engagement, social access and transition.

Identify → Support → Review cycles are being embedded into everyday practice across participating settings.

Early indicators

It is early. Full findings will be shared later in 2026 through case studies and reflections.

However, early indicators are already showing clearer professional decision-making, earlier intervention, and increased confidence in responding through a trauma-informed, neurodivergent-affirming lens – rather than reacting to behaviour.

We are committed to sharing this evidence honestly and in full as it develops. What we are seeing so far suggests that early identification changes the decisions adults make – and that change before crisis improves a child’s outcomes.

In 2025, Child Therapy Service was invited to deliver workshops at SEND Live 2025 in Oxford — one of the UK’s leading events for professionals working with children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

Delegates reported high relevance, practical application, and increased confidence in supporting children with complex needs.

In their words

“Your workshops were a highlight of the event, and the feedback from attendees has been overwhelmingly positive. From the insightful discussions to the practical strategies shared, your workshops have provided our delegates with valuable knowledge and tools that will undoubtedly benefit their work with children and young people. We look forward to working with you again in the future.” – Lydia Martin, Senior SEND Project Officer, SEND Live 2025

What this tells us

The BOUNCE Approach, developed through years of direct work with children, families, and schools, is relevant to any setting and can be implemented straight away.

This means that every professional who works through the BOUNCE lens, rather than reacting to behaviour, can help change a child’s trajectory – away from school absence, exclusion, increased EHCP needs, CAMHS waiting lists, and NEET outcomes, and towards a more positive future.