Therapeutic Classrooms

Creating safe spaces for children

Our therapeutic classrooms are a brand new approach that redefines the traditional classroom set up. The average UK classroom is cluttered, uncomfortable, overwhelming and outdated, and is not designed around the needs of our children today. Let’s be honest – classrooms haven’t changed much in the last 50 years, and that is not good enough.

Children deserve to feel comfortable, safe and inspired, especially when we know there has been a rise in the numbers of children struggling with their social, emotional and mental health. Teachers up and down the country are reporting increases in school refusal, dysregulated behaviours, disengagement and low social skills. Making changes to the classroom can help.

At TPC, we specialise in understanding how childhood trauma, stress and adversity play a huge role in this and have set out to design rooms that meet those needs

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The UK has seen a rise in the number of children struggling with their mental health and wellbeing in primary schools. With everyone now focused on wellbeing as part of their agenda, there is one place we are overlooking.. the classroom.

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What is a Therapeutic Classroom?

Our classrooms are welcoming, safe, inviting environments that cultivate learning through their design. They calm stress hormones and increase feelings of emotional safety, whilst meeting the emotional and mental health needs of the children. Therapeutic classrooms include calm spaces and flexible seating In every room as standard, and allow children to work where they feel most comfortable. They take into consideration space, lighting, comfortability, accessibility, inclusivity and connective learning. Therapeutic classrooms are inspiring places that children want to be in and are underpinned by science.

Our rooms are

Trauma Informed

Attachment Aware

Inclusive

Neurodiverse Sensitive

“This is not just about creating beautiful spaces it’s about creating rooms that make children feel safe and calm”
Shahana Knight

An ethos informed by science

Therapeutic classrooms are not just about putting nice furniture into spaces. They are backed by neuroscience, trauma and attachment theory and are designed with the children’s mental health and wellbeing in mind. Everything we source is specifically chosen with purpose and intention.

Our aims

To change perceptions and raise standards in UK classrooms
To ensure every classroom is trauma informed, attachment aware and inclusive
To ensure every classroom is designed around the needs of the child
To ensure mental health and wellbeing is embedded into the classroom environment
To ensure every child has a nurturing, welcoming environments they can feel emotionally and physically safe in
To ensure all children are comfortable as a basic requirement.
To ensure children have access to flexible seating options that help reflect their needs from session to session
To ensure the environment contributes to long lasting, significant outcomes for children
To ensure the classroom also supports the teachers wellbeing and mental health

Our impact

Our schools have seen an increase in:
Eye contact
Social skills and communication
Calm noise levels
Concentration
Attendance
Disclosures (because children feel safe)
Participation and focus on tasks
Happiness and wellbeing
Comfortability

Our schools have seen a decrease in:
School refusal and avoidance
Dysregulated behaviours
Barriers to learning ( especially for children with ADHD, Autism and ACES)

Our work so far

We have had the privilege of working with many brave, pioneering schools up and down the country who have transformed their environments with us.

We’ve transformed classrooms in all settings. From main stream primary schools – big and small, SEMH schools, special schools and even prep schools.

Working with you

Our approach is new and therefore is constantly evolving, and we are always improving and working alongside our partner schools as we embark on this journey together. We are so grateful to those schools who are brave enough to try something new and move toward a better vision for education. We hope, that one day, this approach will become the new normal for UK classrooms.

This is part of a bigger vision

The Therapeutic Classroom Approach has evolved from what we teach in our Therapeutic Teaching Course –This is a 6 module course for schools that helps them embed a whole school, trauma informed and attachment aware approach to support children’s mental health, wellbeing and behaviour.

Learn More

What our schools say

“For children who have complex trauma backgrounds and children who are anxious the space feels safe and somewhere where they will be supported and allowed to make mistakes. The space tells them that the staff and the school care about them. However, the classroom does not only support children with attachment and trauma needs. All our children feel that learning in this space is easier because they feel calm and have space to think.The rooms have had a positive impact on staff wellbeing and now all our meetings are held there because they are the best places in the school to work and think creatively.”

Head Teacher - Whitefield Primary School Liverpool

“We have seen the benefits of this room in such a short space of time. Children who were previously reluctant to come in, are now here on time, ready to learn. Children with additional needs are able to self-regulate and we have even experienced a child taking a nap on the couch for 10 minutes and then returning to their learning more refreshed!

I would never have imagined it having such a positive effect on our children, but it does – it works!”

Head Teacher - Worsley Menses Primary

Wigan

“The impact is really hard to put into words. We have happy children who love coming to school and who want to learn. We have children who no longer attack staff, kick in walls and trash rooms!”

Personalised Learning Pathways Manager

Southampton

“I have never seen the children this calm”

Class Teacher - Whitefield Primary School

Liverpool

We don’t just transform classrooms

We also transform:

Intervention Rooms

Therapy Rooms

Staff Rooms

Communal Rooms

Dining Rooms

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Here’s how it works

We want to help you create classrooms that cultivate learning through their design, somewhere both teachers and children want to be, and somewhere that supports everyone’s mental health.

Information stage

Let us know you are interested, and we will send you all the information you need to become familiar with what is involved in creating a therapeutic classroom, and what we’ll need from you to get your project started

Design stage

Once we have all the information about your room, we will begin to design the space for you!

Sourcing stage

Once you are happy with the design, we will source all items and soft furnishings and send them to the school

Make over stage

The best bit! Once everything has arrived, you will receive a make over pack from us which will help you put together your room!

Take a look at our previous projects

Every environment we create is tailored around the needs of your children and follows our therapeutic classroom framework. Here are some examples of our work at different phases of this journey.