Emotional Based School Avoidance (EBSA) describes children and young people who experience difficulty in attending school due to emotional factors, often resulting in prolonged absences from school. We know that the earlier difficulties are identified, and support is put in place the more successful we are at developing children and young people’s ability to cope with their anxiety, return to school and access improved attendance and ongoing life opportunities.
As part of Thrive in Education and the Inclusion Strategy there will be a new way to co-ordinate multiagency support around children and young people who are anxious about returning to school in September 2020, either as a result of pre-existing concerns about attending school (EBSA) or more specific COVID-19 related anxieties.
This will include a single referral point (via the Education Welfare Service) and a graduated response to meeting need using the Thrive Framework which conceptualises need in five categories; thriving, getting advice and signposting, getting help, getting more help and getting risk support, and fundamental to the approach is shared decision making with young people and their families.
Collaboration between the following services will offer support to school staff, parents, children and young people:
Referrals for support should be made using the consent form and sent to the Education Welfare Service inbox: EWS@salford.gov.uk. Where there are pre-existing concerns and involvement from professionals, it is envisaged that this pathway will be used to co-ordinate support.
A number of resources have been developed to support the EBSA Thrive Support Pathway, including:
If you are unable to view documents of these types, our downloads page provides links to viewing software.