WELCOME TO
BENS GROUPS

BENS (Bond, Enrich, Nurture, Support) is a wellbeing-focused provision supporting children and young people experiencing social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) and communication challenges.

We work with individuals who may feel marginalised, disengaged from education, struggling with emotional regulation, anxiety, or low confidence, or who are neurodivergent, including those with adverse childhood experiences. Many of the young people we support face barriers to engagement, belonging, and communication.

​

At the core of BENS is a simple, structured approach:

Bond – building safety within the child first, in order to promote and develop consistent, trusting relationships.

Enrich – developing confidence, life skills, autonomy, and aspirations through structured activities that promote problem-solving and a growth mindset. We normalise mistakes to reduce perfectionism, encouraging curiosity and a ‘have a go’ attitude.

Nurture – creating a calm, supportive environment that promotes emotional safety. We lead by example through a non-judgemental approach, allowing the child to explore themselves, their aspirations, values, and limiting beliefs.

Support – personalising strategies to help each individual move forward, reach their goals, and live a full life. This includes understanding emotions, recognising how the body responds, and developing tools to build resilience and engagement within their community.

​

Our approach is child-led and trauma-informed, embedded with practical activities that help young people understand their emotions, regulate their bodies, develop social and communication skills, and build resilience and autonomy.

We provide structured sessions in small groups within a safe and welcoming environment, with access to breakout spaces when needed. Each session begins with reflective practice, focusing on self-awareness, shifting negative thought patterns towards a solution-focused mindset, and noticing positive moments (‘glimmers’).

We develop problem-solving and communication skills through games and activities, alongside life skills such as cooking, healthy eating, and self-care.

​

We also offer 1:1 support for those who are too anxious to begin in a group setting. This allows each child to work at their own pace, building safety and confidence before transitioning into group sessions and, eventually, wider community engagement.

Our referrals primarily come from services we work closely with, including schools, CAMHS, social care, and other professionals. This ensures consistent, joined-up support, where safeguarding and SEMH needs are prioritised to enable secure reintegration into learning environments and the community.

We focus not only on immediate wellbeing, but also on long-term outcomes—supporting young people to re-engage with learning, build positive relationships, develop autonomy, and strengthen their sense of identity and belonging.

​

We also support and engage parents, helping them understand processes such as assessments and EHCPs, and feel more confident in supporting their child with SEND. We offer parent drop-in sessions where families can connect, share experiences, normalise challenges, and support one another. We also explore the impact on parents’ own mental health, providing strategies to support their wellbeing.

​

In short, we build emotional resilience, a growth mindset, self-awareness, autonomy, and communication skills. We coach both children and parents to develop positive coping strategies that support emotional wellbeing, reduce anxiety, and improve communication and social interaction. Our aim is for individuals to feel more self-assured and develop a clear sense of purpose.

We embed a growth mindset, solution-focused thinking, and goal-setting throughout our provision to maximise long-term impact. This supports young people to remain positively engaged with learning and to build meaningful relationships.

Our young people feel safe, supported, and understood. This enables them to build confidence, and develop aspirations for the future.