Building Trust and Empowering Pupils: Supporting Successful Transitions for Pupils with SEND

“Transitions aren’t just about change. They’re about trust.”

It's that time of year when lots of pupils will be moving to new settings and even new classrooms within school. Transitions can be turbulent—especially for pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). For children with neurodiverse profiles, such as Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC), ADHD, or sensory processing differences, transitions can be especially overwhelming. Change disrupts their predictability, challenges their social understanding, and can heighten anxiety.

This blog post shares my personal reflections and understanding of how to support SEND learners during the most sensitive phase of their school journey: joining a new setting.

Understanding the Child Behind the EHCP

When pupils join your setting they may come with detailed backstories and diagnoses.

Profiles can be complex and layered and so the importance of intersectional, person-centred care is key to supporting these pupils who need time, trust, and targeted support.

Maybe try;

• Schedule multi-agency meetings where necessary (e.g. Speech and Language Team(SALT), Educational Psychologist (EPs).

• Review EHCP, but also conduct a strengths-based profile.

• Use reliable and evidence based tools like the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)/Boxall Profile for Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs.

• Review their sensory needs if necessary.

• Incorporate the child’s interests into planning

The Importance of Predictability and Preparation

Predictability is a protective factor. Unexpected changes or unfamiliar environments can cause sensory overload or behavioural dysregulation.

Creating as much predictability as possible can, despite being small in effort, made a huge differences to a pupil’s sense of control and comfort.

Maybe try;

• Use visual timetables, now-and-next boards, and social stories.

• Ensure consistency of adult support, using photos to indicate “who” will be present.

• Offer a phased or staggered transition if needed.

• Pre-teaching of routines and classroom expectations.

• A personalised transition booklet with photos of key staff and rooms, sent to family before the first day.

Collaboration Is Key

Not one person alone can carry transition.

Formalise a team based approach into clear stages: planning, goal-setting, implementation, and evaluation. For neurodiverse pupils, this structured and proactive approach is essential—not just to meet needs, but to foster emotional safety.

Maybe try:

• Form a transition team (SENDCO, teacher, TAs, external professionals, family).

• Within your team establish planning goals, document strategies, assign support roles, and evaluate regularly.

• Weekly planning meetings to help adapt strategies in real-time.

Listening to the Parents: A Vital Voice

Parents of children with SEND can face a history of feeling unheard, blamed, or dismissed- and sometimes even trust has eroded. Parents can need this trust rebuilding —not with promises, but with consistency, empathy, and action.

Never assumed you know better—just listen. Parental insight is crucial.

Maybe try:

• Create regular two-way communication.

• Begin with a home visit if possible.

• Recognise past educational trauma; take a non-judgmental approach.

• Provide one point of contact for communication.

• Validate parents’ need for clarity, including around diagnosis—even when you lean towards the social model of disability.

Creating Personalised, Safe Spaces

Children with ASC often benefit from low-arousal environments and flexible provision. For some pupils, this may look like: initial lessons taking place in dedicated sensory-friendly spaces, with one-to-one support, movement breaks, and flexible seating. This may appear exclusionary on the surface, but for a neurodiverse child navigating high anxiety and dysregulation; it’s the bridge to inclusion. Your goal has to be not maintaining this, but to build trust and resilience.

Maybe try:

• Initial 1:1 or withdrawal support is a bridge—not a permanent structure.

• Ensure a plan is in place to integrate the child gradually into mainstream learning and peer interactions.

• Continually revisit provision to ensure it’s evolving as the pupil grows in confidence.

Empowering Adults to Make a Difference

Pupils don’t just need good planning—they need emotionally attuned adults. Prioritise regular reflective dialogue between staff: what worked, what didn’t, and why?

Empower staff to gently guide pupils from dependence to autonomy, without overwhelming them.

• Meet weekly with supporting TAs to review progress, challenges, and next steps.

• Model graduated independence strategies (e.g. “promoting > clueing > modelling > correcting”). (Education Endowment Foundation’s (EEF) “promoting-to-correcting” framework)

• Encourage emotionally attuned, trauma-informed interactions.

Supporting Self-Efficacy and Identity

What happens with the pupil has low self-efficacy, especially after negative educational experiences?

Embrace the pupil for being their authentic self. Inclusion, after all, isn’t just about how a child learns—it’s about who they are allowed to be.

• Use child-led reflection sessions at the end of the day.

• Use daily reflection as an opportunity to gain the pupil's voice in their own learning journey. Let the child co-direct goals and celebrate small wins.

• Reinforce a growth mindset and create predictable routines that build confidence.

Final Reflections

Successful transitions for pupils with SEND don’t happen by chance—they happen through planned, proactive, and compassionate action. From clear communication and predictable routines to sensory-informed spaces and emotionally literate adults, every decision sends a message: you belong here.

Transitions are never just about changing schools—they’re about changing perceptions, nurturing potential, and rebuilding trust.