Trauma Perceptive Practice is an Essex approach to understanding behaviour and supporting emotional well-being.

At South Green Infant and Nursery School we began our journey to become a TPP school in September 2021, with Mrs Jackson and Mrs Gray undertaking the training programme.  

Since then all staff have been trained in elements 1,2,3,4,5 and 6.  We aim to complete elements 7,8 and 9 by the end of the year.

TPP has been written and put together for educators to understand the impact of developmental trauma and chronic stress on a child's development, behaviour and learning.  In doing so, educators will have more understanding for how trauma and chronic stress alters brain development, causing delays in skill development which in turn can result further downstream in unhelpful and/or harmful behaviours at school.

It aids educators to shift from perhaps more traditional language to a trauma perceptive description of vulnerable individuals which in turn can create the necessary compassion and kindness instead of blame and shame, hope instead of hopelessness and connection and belonging rather than disconnection that are needed for the positive relationships to occur.

This approach explores the interconnected and critical importance of the development of the human brain, the attachment relationship, the differential impacts of childhood developmental trauma on children and young people's social and emotional health and the importance of developmental experiences through supported relationships.  These relationships can be powerfully supportive in enabling the child to become resilient and to mitigate against the impact of trauma.

Importantly, we must also remember that children and young people are more than what happened to them; they are more than just their trauma.  We must not slip into the 'murky water' of being deficit based; as educators we have a duty to foster the possibility of wellbeing and building resilience.  Whilst the question of 'what's happened?' is more helpful than 'what's wrong?',  we must also not forget to be curious to look for the strengths and to ask 'what's right, where are this persons strengths or what is going well?'