Please see our parent programmes, workshops and video resources. 

Please see information available in our useful resources section of the SEND Local Offer. 

Speak to your GP or where relevant the school nurse - if you feel there may be an underlying cause, please visit your GP to support with support and next steps.

Please visit our mental health and wellbeing support hub 

If your child or young person is struggling in school, please speak to the class teacher or school SENCo. 

Some schools may have accessed our Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) offer. 

Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) Offer to schools 

The Milton Keynes SEND Team offer involvement from the Specialist Teaching Teams and Educational Psychologist service where children and young people have a SEND need, this includes CYP with an identified learning need, mental health need and behaviours that challenge. Settings and schools make requests for support by contacting our SEND Support Line. Advice can also be given via the SEND Support Line to settings, schools, professionals and parents/carers. 

Support offered can vary according to need but may include a combination of:

• Consultation with supporting staff
• Direct support to the CYP  
• Modelling of appropriate strategies with the CYP to the supporting staff
• Home visits working in collaboration with the home school and other professionals where involved
• Agreed number of ongoing sessions to upskill and inform the offer of support and provision a school is providing 

Think about a child's behaviour a bit like an iceberg - you can only see the tip but there’s a lot more underneath that you can’t see. There can be underlying reasons for challenging behaviour. So, you need to ask why is the child behaving like this? Not, what is the child doing.

Reasons for challenging behaviour can include:

• sensory issues
• poor communication skills
• frustration
• fears and phobias
• misunderstanding of social rules
• literal understanding
• too much language being used by someone
• not enough time to process what’s been asked - some children can take up 2 minutes to process a single instruction
• lack of knowledge or understanding of how to behave appropriately
• pressure to do tasks which are too difficult at the time
• fear of the situation
• difficulties with making themselves understood
• difficulty in understanding what’s being asked of them
• environmental influences
• changes in routine

A solution 

Use an ABC chart to find the trigger points for the behaviour:

• A - antecedents - what happened before?
• B - behaviour - what was the behaviour observed?
• C - consequences - what happened next and how did the adult deal with the situation?

Behaviours of Concern - Chris White, Specialist Teacher with the Inclusion Specialist Teaching Team, presents these videos looking at behaviours of concern, why you may see them and strategies to support.

1. Why You May See Behaviours of Concern 
2. Strategies To Support Behaviours of Concern 

The challenging behaviour foundation 

We are making a difference to the lives of children, young people and adults with severe learning disabilities whose behaviour challenges, by:

Providing information

We provide practical information for families and professionals about understanding and supporting children, young people and adults whose behaviour challenges.

Providing support

Our Family Support Workers can offer individual support and information over the phone and by email. We also offer peer-to-peer support through our Carers’ Catch-Ups, and email networks for family carers and for professionals.

Running workshops

We offer a range of workshops to families and professionals, co-delivered by a professional trainer and a family carer trainer. Our workshops have been found to reduce challenging behaviour and have positive outcomes for families and professionals who attend.

Speaking up for families on a national level

We listen to the experiences of families and use these to highlight the needs of individuals whose behaviour challenges and their families. We set up and  chair the Challenging Behaviour – National Strategy Group working to promote high quality support for people whose behaviour challenges.

The National Autistic Society 

NAS have information and advice to support children and young people with autism. 

Mencap 

Offer information, advice and support for children and young people with learning disabilities. 

Down's Syndrome Association 

The Down's Syndrome Association share information, advice and strategies (including PBS) for parents/carers of children and young people with Down's Syndrome.