Trauma-informed approaches have become increasingly prominent within education policy and guidance, although the term is not always explicitly used.

Trauma-informed practice is the recognition and understanding that trauma – an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by a person as harmful or life-threatening – can impact a person’s wellbeing. This can be mentally, physically, emotionally and socially.

Subsequently, teachers and other school staff should aim to create a culturally sensitive and safe service which avoids re-traumatisation: feeling again the thoughts, emotions and sensations they experienced.

Drawing on my teaching and research in trauma-informed education, I have worked with children, young people, schools and other children’s services to support mental health and wellbeing. In this article, I share some reflections that I have learned over the years.

School staff are not expected to be trauma experts. However, there is a growing expectation, as suggested through taught content in the national curriculum, that there should be a shared understanding of what trauma is and the impact it can have. From this, it is hoped that the approaches and practices they adopt to support children and young people are trauma-informed.

There is growing........

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