Why I Created Snapshots (Even Though I Already Had the Assessments)
The problem isn’t assessment — it’s what happens next
Most settings already have assessments.
Rosenberg. Stirling. PANAS. Sensory profiles. Pupil voice. THIVE. Boxhall.
They tell you:
- how a child feels
- how often something happens
- where the difficulty sits
But they don’t answer the question you’re now expected to answer:
What did you do — and did it work?
We already know how to do this… just not for wellbeing
In education, the cycle is clear.
You teach.
You assess.
You adapt.
You don’t wait until the end of term to see if learning has worked. You check as you go — and you change what isn’t working.
But with social and emotional wellbeing, that same principle often disappears.
Support is put in place… and then left.
And that’s where the risk is
This isn’t about low-level concern.
This is the child:
- at risk of emotionally-based school avoidance
- on the edge of disengagement
- escalating towards exclusion
They don’t have six weeks.
They can’t wait until the end of term to find out if an intervention worked.
By then:
- attendance may have dropped
- behaviour may have escalated
- relationships may have broken down
The cost is too high.
What needs to change
We need to treat social and emotional wellbeing the same way we treat learning:
baseline → support → review → adapt
But crucially:
in real time — not retrospectively
- How are they today?
- What could I print off and use today?
- Is what we’ve put in place helping today?
And if it isn’t:
change it. Immediately.
Why I created Snapshots
I didn’t create Snapshots to replace existing assessments.
I created it for the child who can’t wait.
Snapshots gives you:
- A “right now” picture of how a child is doing today
- An instant, tiered editable support plan you can act on today
- Printable strategies and staff actions ready to use today
- Access to CPD and interventions you can implement immediately
No delay.
No interpretation gap.
No waiting for escalation.
What this means in practice
You don’t wait weeks.
You:
- identify risk today
- act today
- support staff today
Then you check again in a couple of weeks:
- Is it working?
- Is risk reducing?
- Do we need to change course?
Because if it’s not working:
don’t keep doing it. Change it.
The shift we need
We can’t afford to be reactive.
We have to be proactive.
That means:
- earlier identification
- faster response
- continuous review
- and confident adjustment
This is about more than process.
It’s about life chances.
The bottom line
Some children can wait.
These children can’t.
They need:
- clarity now
- action now
- support now
Snapshots gives you that.
See how it works
Watch the short overview to see how Snapshots gives you a clear picture of need — today — and what to do next.
