Supporting Young People with EBSA

Emotionally Based School Avoidance is one of the most misunderstood and poorly served areas in education. It gets labelled as truancy, bad parenting, or a phase that will pass. Families are left fighting for support while their child’s world gets smaller and smaller.

SEMCAS works with young people whose anxiety around school has got to the point where attending simply isn’t possible right now. We don’t judge, and we don’t push. We start from where the young person actually is.

What EBSA looks like

EBSA shows up differently in every young person. It might be physical symptoms every morning, complete refusal, gradual withdrawal over months, or a sudden drop off after an incident or period of illness. What it almost always has in common is high anxiety, a loss of confidence, and a young person who genuinely wants to be okay but can’t find a way through on their own.

How we work

There’s no rushing this. Young people with EBSA need time, consistency, and adults who aren’t going to pile on the pressure. Our tutors are experienced in working gently, building a relationship first and introducing learning gradually once trust is established.

In practice that looks like:

• Starting small — sometimes one hour, in a familiar place, with no expectations beyond showing up
• Working at home or in the community, wherever feels safest
• Following the young person’s interests to create positive associations with learning again
• Working closely with families throughout, keeping everyone on the same page
• Gradually building up hours and engagement at a pace the young person can manage

Getting back on track

The goal isn’t just to get a young person back into a classroom. It’s to rebuild their confidence, reduce their anxiety, and help them find a way forward that actually works for them — whether that’s returning to school, moving to a college, or pursuing an alternative route.

If your child has an EHCP or an EOTAS or YOTAS package in place, we can work with you and your local authority to deliver provision that properly reflects their needs. If you’re still trying to get the right support in place, we can help you understand your options.

Get in touch

If your child is struggling to attend school and you’re not sure where to turn, we’re here.

Supporting Young People with a PDA Profile

If your child has a PDA profile, you’ll already know that standard education approaches tend to make things worse, not better. Demands, rigid routines, and performance pressure push anxiety through the roof. What can look like defiance or refusal is almost always a stress response.

SEMCAS has worked extensively with young people with a PDA profile. Our tutors understand it properly, not just on paper. They know how to build trust slowly, how to hold sessions lightly, and how to create the conditions where a young person can actually start to engage — on their terms, in their time.

How we work with PDA learners

Every package we put together is different, because every young person is different. In general though, our approach is built around a few things that really matter when working with PDA:

• Using indirect, collaborative language rather than instructions or demands
• Following the young person’s interests rather than pushing a set curriculum
• Prioritising regulation and safety before anything academic
• Keeping faces consistent — the same tutor, the same routine, no unexpected changes
• No sanctions, no pressure, no performance expectations

Our tutors have worked with young people who haven’t engaged with education in years. Building that trust takes time and the right person — and finding the right person is something we take seriously.

What we offer

We put together fully managed, bespoke education packages for young people with a PDA profile, delivered at home or in the community. That might be a few hours of carefully matched tuition a week, a Personal Assistant who really understands them, or a full package covering everything.

If you already have an EOTAS or YOTAS package, or an EHCP in place, we can work alongside you and your local authority to shape or deliver the provision that’s written into it.

Get in touch

We’re always happy to have an initial chat. No pressure, no obligation.