Sessions use a gradual, low-pressure social skills approach, prioritising the pupil's own pace. Pushing withdrawn pupils into group situations too quickly is well known to backfire, so each step here is small and pupil-led. This follows the DfE's Mental health and behaviour in schools advice to treat withdrawal as a possible sign of an underlying difficulty worth understanding rather than a discipline issue, and supports the wellbeing and confidence outcomes assessed under Ofsted's personal development and well-being evaluation area.
Objective: Pupil feels comfortable enough to talk one-to-one and share at least one honest reflection on how school feels socially.
Check-in: 1. Keep this very low pressure. No questions about friendships at all today. 2. Ask: 'what are you into outside school?' Games, music, anything they choose. 3. Silence is fine. Do not fill every gap — a withdrawn pupil is used to adults doing that. 4. Doing an activity side by side is often easier than sitting face to face. 5. Say what happens to what they tell you: you keep notes, and the plan at the end goes to staff they agree to. If something worries you about their safety you have to pass it on, and you would tell them who to.
Input: 1. Explain what the course is in plain words: some time each week, with you, about school feeling easier. 2. Avoid clinical language — no 'social skills', no 'intervention'. 3. Say what it is not: not a punishment, not something their class will know about. 4. Ask whether there is anything they would rather you did not ask about. Then honour it.
Activity: 1. Get out the low-pressure activity ideas. 2. Ask: 'what do you like doing when you aren't in lessons?' 3. Pupil picks something from the low-pressure activity ideas, or their own. 4. Do it together and talk about that, not about school. 5. Do not push towards the topic — this session is for them getting used to you.
Reflect: 1. Only if they seem ready, ask: 'is there anything about school that feels hard at the moment?' 2. If they would rather not say, leave it — there are four more sessions.
Watch for: Do not rush this session, for withdrawn pupils, trust-building may need to extend beyond one session before real progress is possible.
Parent/carer take-home: Spend a few minutes doing something low-pressure together, like a shared activity, without pushing the topic of friends.
You're seeing week 1 in full. The remaining 5 sessions, along with the printable resource packs, are available once you have an account.
Schools can start a free three-week pilot with up to 3 mentor seats and 10 pupils. No card required.