EBSA Horizons

Stockton Funded Training for School Staff

Supporting pupils experiencing emotional barriers to attendance

Fully Funded by Stockton

Immediate Access

Two Years Access

"Before starting, I had very little knowledge on EBSA. I have recently started a new school and role of SEMH HLTA. I am also working on improving SEN attendance so this has been really helpful."

SEMH Higher Level Teaching Assistant

"It was a great course, lots of useful info. This course came at the right time for my year group as we have a few children who would benefit from strategies shown. Lots of things I didn't know."

Class Teacher, Primary School

"Thank you - I wish I'd done this sooner. There are children I could have supported far more quickly."


SENCO & Inclusion Lead, Primary School

Stockton have funded full access to EBSA Horizons, practical training designed to strengthen your existing systems and build staff confidence in early identification and intervention for some of our most vulnerable pupils.

No cost to you or your school.
Over 5,000+ staff trained across the UK.

What EBSA Horizons Gives You

LEVEL 1:

Whole School Training

45-60 minutes

Core training for every team member - from reception staff to Senior Leadership Team. Recognising EBSA and early response, understanding anxiety and emotional barriers to attendance. Everyone speaks the same language and has immediate response capability.

  • Understanding anxiety and school avoidance

  • First response strategies that help

  • When and how to escalate concerns

Fits within single INSET or twilight session

LEVEL 2:

Pastoral & SEND Teams

3 hours

Enhanced training for those wanting to directly support CYP experiencing EBSA e.g. SENCOs, pastoral leads, and attendance staff. EBSA Risk and Resilience Profiles at child, home and school levels, assessment frameworks and planning, working with external agencies, and supporting families through challenging circumstances.

  • EBSA Risk and Resilience Profiles

  • Assessment frameworks and intervention planning

  • Supporting families through challenging circumstances

Includes insights from parent and pupil interviews about what has helped them

LEVEL 3:

In Depth Support and Leadership

6+ hours

Specialist training and resources for those supporting pupils with the most entrenched EBSA. Leadership development for designated School EBSA Leads. Whole-school audit and action planning, implementation guidance and support, leading staff development, and school accreditation pathway.

  • Whole-school audit and needs analysis

  • Strategic action planning and implementation

  • Specialist modules on entrenched EBSA and supporting Autistic CYP

Builds sustainable culture change capabilities and deep expertise in complex cases

All three levels available to you. Choose what fits your role and level of involvement with children and families experiencing EBSA. Access anytime over two years.

Why This Matters for Your Role

If you're a class teacher or form tutor

Morning registers. The same empty seat again. Then they do come in, and you want to help them feel safe and supported, but you're uncertain about what approach will work best.

This training helps you understand what's actually happening for these pupils, helping pupils feel safe and engaged in learning.

After the training, you’ll better understand:

  • How EBSA can present across a spectrum of need - from subtle signs to more visible distress

  • Why some pupils begin to avoid school, show increasing distress, or reach the point of non-attendance

  • What helps pupils feel emotionally safer in school

  • The early relational responses that build trust

If you're a TA or support staff

You're often the one pupils confide in. You notice the patterns emerging before others do. You have valuable insights about what's happening for these children.

This training gives you the professional frameworks and language to share your observations effectively, ensuring your voice contributes meaningfully to supporting vulnerable pupils.

You'll be able to:

  • Recognise early warning signs with confidence

  • Share your observations using professional frameworks that facilitate collaborative discussion

  • Understand which concerns need immediate action and which need monitoring

  • Support anxious pupils during unstructured times when they're most vulnerable

If you're a SENCO or pastoral lead

By the time EBSA situations reach you, they often feel complex and entrenched. Families are experiencing stress, colleagues are seeking guidance, and you're working hard to coordinate support alongside your many other responsibilities.

This training gives you comprehensive assessment tools to understand what's happening, and helps you build whole-staff shared understanding so everyone can work together compassionately and effectively.

You'll gain:

  • How to nurture a compassionate, shared understanding of EBSA across your staff team

  • EBSA Risk and Resilience Profile for child, home, and school levels

  • Assessment and planning frameworks grounded in real practice

  • Approaches for working compassionately with families experiencing challenging circumstances

  • Evidence to support EHCP assessments and reviews

If you're a senior leader or headteacher

You need a strategic, compassionate approach to supporting attendance. You want confident staff who understand how to help vulnerable pupils. You're committed to inclusive practice and positive outcomes for all children.

This training provides a whole-school framework that embeds sustainable practice, with audit and planning tools to support continuous improvement and demonstrate your commitment to supporting your most vulnerable pupils.

You'll be able to:

  • Lead compassionate whole-school culture change around attendance and wellbeing

  • Monitor staff development and impact through clear metrics

  • Build robust evidence of inclusive, child-centred practice

  • Achieve formal accreditation as an EBSA Aware, EBSA Friendly, or EBSA Champion school

What Makes This Training Effective

Grounded in extensive school experience

Dr Jerricah Holder is an Educational Psychologist who's spent over 10 years working directly with schools on EBSA. The training uses real situations and approaches that have helped children and families - practical strategies from actual practice.

Respects your capacity and workload

Self-paced training that fits into the time you actually have, e.g. complete it during INSET, or in 10-minute segments. Two years' access means no pressure - develop your understanding at a pace that respects everyone's workload.

Strengthens what you're already doing

This isn't another separate system. It integrates naturally with your existing SEND and wellbeing approaches, building your team's capacity to support pupils experiencing emotional barriers to attendance.

Centres the child's voice and experience

Evidence-based approaches with the child's voice at the heart of assessment and intervention. Learn from interviews with parents and pupils about what genuinely helped them feel safe and supported.

What School Staff Say

"Undertaking EBSA training across our whole school has had a transformative impact on our approach to supporting emotionally based school avoidance. With all of our staff trained at Level 1, and key staff and SLT completing Level 3, we now have a much deeper, shared understanding of EBSA throughout our school community."

SENCO, Primary School

"It is a fantastic course to ensure consistency, a whole-school approach, and in-depth knowledge of what can sometimes be misunderstood. An absolute must for all schools."

Deputy Headteacher, Secondary School

"I'm office-based and witness children in various stages of anxiety. This training has given me the confidence to ask more relevant questions to help put them at ease."

School Administrator, Primary School

"This is a simple, well-structured training programme that is easily accessible for all staff and can be broken down into shorter sessions where required. This does seem to be the whole package."

Head of Year, Secondary School

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to complete all three levels?

No. Choose the level that fits your role and involvement with pupils experiencing EBSA. Many staff complete Level 1 for essential understanding. Those directly supporting EBSA cases often progress to Level 2. Level 3 is designed for designated leads supporting whole-school change.

Can I complete this during work time?

Many schools allocate INSET or twilight time for Level 1, recognising the whole-school benefit. Speak with your leadership team about how this training fits with your school's professional development priorities.

How long does each level take?

Level 1: 45-60 minutes (fits within single INSET or twilight session). Level 2: approximately 3 hours. Level 3: 6+ hours. All are self-paced, so you can complete them in ways that suit your schedule.

What's included in EBSA Horizons?

Training Content:

∙ Video training modules by Dr Jerricah Holder with extensive school-based experience

∙ Six main chapters covering EBSA comprehensively, plus specialist chapters on supporting Autistic CYP and entrenched EBSA

∙ Real case examples and practical scenarios from actual school settings

∙ Parent and pupil interviews sharing what genuinely helped them (Level 2)

Resources and Tools:

∙ EBSA Risk and Resilience Profile for assessing child, home, and school factors

∙ Assessment frameworks and intervention planning templates

∙ Downloadable resources you can use immediately in your practice

∙ Whole-school audit tool (Level 3)

∙ Action planning templates for sustainable implementation

Support and Community:

∙ Individual completion certificates for each level

∙ Access to a growing community of school staff across Medway and beyond

∙ Ability to submit questions to Dr Jerricah Holder through the platform

∙ Two years' continued access to revisit content and support new staff

∙ School accreditation pathway (EBSA Aware, EBSA Friendly, EBSA Champion)

What's covered in the training?

Level 1: Whole School Training (45-60 minutes)

∙ Recognising EBSA signs and early warning indicators

∙ Understanding anxiety and school avoidance from the pupil's perspective

∙ Immediate, compassionate response strategies

∙ When to escalate concerns and how to involve families early

Level 2: Pastoral & SEND Teams (3 hours)

∙ EBSA Risk and Resilience Profiles at child, home, and school levels

∙ Comprehensive assessment frameworks and intervention planning

∙ Working effectively with external agencies

∙ Supporting families through challenging circumstances

∙ Supporting Autistic children and young people experiencing EBSA

∙ Understanding and working with entrenched EBSA

∙ Insights from parent and pupil interviews about what has helped them

Level 3: In Depth Support and Leadership (6+ hours)

∙ Specialist approaches for pupils with most entrenched EBSA

∙ Whole-school audit and compassionate assessment of current practice

∙ Strategic action planning and implementation guidance

∙ Leading staff development and building sustainable culture change

∙ School accreditation pathway (EBSA Aware, EBSA Friendly, EBSA Champion)

What if I have questions during the training?

You can submit questions to Dr Jerricah Holder through the platform. You'll also join a growing community of school staff working compassionately with EBSA across Medway and beyond.

Will I receive a certificate?

Yes. You'll receive individual completion certificates for each level you complete, available to download immediately.

How does this relate to the SEND Code of Practice?

This training aligns with the SEND Code of Practice principles, supporting early identification, graduated response, and child-centred approaches. It helps you strengthen your school's inclusive practice and support for vulnerable pupils.

Register for Your Free Access

Fully funded by Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council.

Two years' access starting when you register.

About Dr Jerricah Holder

Child and Educational Psychologist with over 10 years' specialist EBSA experience. Lead developer of guidelines and training used by Educational Psychologists and Local Authorities across the UK. Evidence-based approaches grounded in extensive practice and research. Compassionate and engaging delivery of training.

Stockton's commitment to creating shared understanding and coordinated support to improve outcomes for all our CYP.

Questions or need support?

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council: [email protected]

Programme Support: [email protected]