Specialist Attendance Support

Rebuilding Trust, Engagement and Access to Education

Inspiring Futures CIC provides specialist attendance support for young people experiencing significant and often overlapping barriers to accessing education.

We have a strong track record of engaging young people who may not respond to traditional attendance interventions, including long-term non-attenders, young people experiencing emotionally based school avoidance and those who have become disconnected from their school or education.

Our approach begins with understanding why a young person is unable to attend. We build trusted relationships, identify the barriers beneath the absence and create realistic steps towards renewed engagement.

Who Can We Support?

Our attendance support may benefit young people experiencing:

• Emotionally based school avoidance.

• Persistent or severe absence.

• Long-term non-attendance.

• Anxiety about entering or remaining in school.

• SEND, neurodiversity or unmet additional needs.

• Difficulties following suspension, exclusion or placement breakdown.

• Trauma, bereavement or significant changes within family life.

• Bullying, friendship difficulties or social isolation.

• Low confidence, poor emotional wellbeing or fear of failure.

• Difficulty coping with busy classrooms, noise or sensory demands.

• Loss of routines, motivation or connection with education.

• Anxiety around transitions, including moving schools or returning after an extended absence.

• Negative experiences of education or a breakdown in trust with professionals.

• Vulnerability to exploitation, offending or negative peer influences.

Some young people may be described as “school refusers.” However, we recognise that non-attendance is often a sign that a young person is experiencing needs or barriers they do not yet have the skills, confidence or support to overcome.

Our Approach

Pressure and punishment alone rarely resolve complex attendance difficulties. Our relationship-led approach focuses on creating safety, trust and achievable progress.

Support may include:

• Outreach and initial engagement in a setting where the young person feels safe.

• Consistent one-to-one support from a trusted adult.

• Exploration of the reasons and triggers behind non-attendance.

• Emotional wellbeing and anxiety-management support.

• Confidence, resilience and self-esteem development.

• Re-establishing healthy routines and realistic expectations.

• Activities designed around the young person’s strengths and interests.

• Positive experiences of learning outside a traditional classroom.

• Support with communication, relationships and emotional regulation.

• Gradual and supported reintroduction to school.

• Preparation for meetings, transitions and changes in provision.

• Liaison with families, schools and involved professionals.

• Regular progress monitoring and feedback.

We meet young people at their individual starting point. For someone who has been out of education for a long time, the first step may simply be answering a message, meeting a trusted worker or leaving the house for a short activity.

These steps may appear small, but they can form the foundations for sustainable change.

A Flexible Pathway Back to Learning

Our support is personalised rather than based on a single fixed pathway. Depending on the young person’s needs, the programme may combine mentoring, educational activities, sport, wellbeing support and gradual exposure to learning environments.

Progress may involve:

• Establishing regular contact with a trusted adult.

• Attending sessions consistently with Inspiring Futures.

• Reconnecting with learning through practical or interest-led activities.

• Developing strategies for managing anxiety and difficult emotions.

• Attending selected lessons or activities within school.

• Gradually increasing time in education.

• Moving into an appropriate alternative provision placement.

• Preparing for post-16 education, training or employment.

The goal is not simply to secure a short-term return. It is to help create a positive and realistic pathway that the young person can sustain.

Working With Families

Families can experience considerable stress when a young person is unable to attend school. Parents and carers may feel blamed, overwhelmed or unsure where to turn for help.

We work respectfully with families to understand their experiences, identify what is already helping and encourage consistent support around the young person. Our approach is practical, non-judgemental and focused on achievable outcomes.

Working in Partnership With Schools

We work alongside schools, local authorities, SEND teams and other professionals to complement existing attendance, pastoral and safeguarding support.

Partnership working may include:

• Identifying the underlying barriers to attendance.

• Agreeing shared and achievable targets.

• Contributing to support and reintegration planning.

• Providing regular engagement and progress updates.

• Supporting communication between the young person, family and school.

• Helping the young person prepare for meetings or a return to education.

• Reviewing what is working and adapting support when needed.

Our involvement can provide schools with additional capacity and a different route for reaching young people who have become difficult to engage.

What Do We Aim to Achieve?

Through our Specialist Attendance Support Programme, we aim to help young people:

• Rebuild trust in adults and education.

• Feel heard, understood and supported.

• Identify and manage the barriers affecting attendance.

• Improve confidence, resilience and emotional wellbeing.

• Develop healthier routines and coping strategies.

• Reconnect with learning and positive activities.

• Increase their engagement and participation.

• Strengthen relationships with school, family and professionals.

• Make a gradual and sustainable return to education.

• Progress towards a positive future in education, training or employment.

Find Out More

If your school is supporting a young person whose attendance is causing concern, particularly where previous interventions have had limited success, we would welcome the opportunity to discuss how we may be able to help.

Contact Inspiring Futures CIC to discuss a referral, targeted attendance intervention or tailored partnership programme for your school.