Principle 3: Developing relationships is fundamental

Children and young people need strong relationships with adults in school to feel safe. Most early years settings use a key adult model to:

1. help children and young people (CYP) separate from their parents,
2. integrate into an unfamiliar or scary setting,
3. ensure continuity of support when children find it hard to understand/communicate their needs.

Using this model for older children provides the same support as those who are struggling to attend. Older children may be experiencing similar challenges in separation, feeling safe and being able to understand and communicate what is happening to them.

Definition and purpose

• A Key Adult is an individual within the school who has the responsibility of being a consistent/supportive presence for a specific child.
• Their primary purpose is to nurture and advocate for the child. They will provide emotional support and stability.

Key Adult responsibilities

• They are a consistent presence. The Key Adult ensures they are available to the child throughout the school day. They check in with the child during transitions between places or adults. They will check in at agreed intervals or when they recognise arising emotional needs.
•  Emotional Support: They model the role of a trusting adult, offering comfort and understanding. 
• Emotion coaching and co-regulation. These help the CYP to develop their emotional regulation skills. They do this by acknowledging, validating, listening and modelling problem-solving and regulation strategies. This helps children cope with their emotions in the moment.
• The Key Adult advocates for the child’s needs, ensuring they feel heard and understood.

Qualities of an Ideal Key Adult

• Empathy: Understanding and connecting with the child’s emotions.
• Resilience: Remaining steadfast even in challenging situations.
• Imagination: Creatively engaging with the child’s needs.
• Resourcefulness: Finding effective solutions.
• Calmness: Providing a stable presence.
• Acceptance: Embracing the child as they are.

Providing support as a key adult

• You should consider the following when providing support to children and young people in your school:
• Allocate two or three “key adults” to each CYP. These adults serve as points of contact for the child. For most, a group of adults is better so you can plan for continuity of support if a key person is absent. In some extreme cases, a child may need a single key adult.
• Involve the CYP in choosing their key adults where possible. Capitalise on existing relationships.
• Spend time building relationships through enjoyable activities before pushing on more structured activities. See the toolkit section on 'Establishing a rapport' to support your developing relationship.
• If the CYP is not attending school you will need to consider the following to try and establish trust:
  • home visits
  • letters
  • emails
  • phone/video calls
• Focus on active listening and understanding the CYP’s needs.
• Invest in training for staff. Focus on key topics that will help adults understand how to support EBSNA children. These could include:
  • Attachment
  • Trauma
  • Emotion coaching