A warm, informal space to gain insight, share experiences, and feel more confident supporting your child.

Many children and young people experience difficulty attending school, often known as Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA). For neurodivergent learners, this can be linked to anxiety, emotional overwhelm and nervous system overload.

This supportive small-group session is part of our series of chat and support sessions based on the “Can’t Not Won’t” video series (https://sgpc.org.uk/resources), created by SGPC and the South Glos Educational Psychology team.

There will be an opportunity to chat informally with other parents and carers, as well as our peer support team.

In this session we will be viewing part 7: EBSA and Neurodiversity. There is no expectation for you to have watched the video beforehand. We will play it in the session and pause for questions and chat as we go.

What we’ll cover

How neurodiversity can shape a child’s experience of school

Why EBSA can be an anxiety‑driven response rather than a behavioural choice

What might be happening beneath the surface when a child refuses, shuts down, or becomes distressed

Compassionate, curiosity‑led ways to understand and support your child and strategies to try

Who is this for?

Parents carers of neurodivergent children and young people who would like to understand more about EBSA

We understand that you may have children at home who you need to bring, please book a child ticket for them alongside your own. We will set up some quiet activities near you and we also have Wi-Fi but headphones will be necessary if using devices. Children and young people will remain your responsibility throughout the session.

What to expect

A warm, informal and non-judgmental space to watch and discuss the video, share experiences, ask questions and explore ways to support your child. Tea and coffee will be provided.

Where can I find other videos in the series?

All seven videos in the series, along with the accompanying handouts are available for you to view any time in the resources area of our website.

https://sgpc.org.uk/resources (https://sgpc.org.uk/resources)

Description supplied by the event organiser.