Case studies

Case study 1

How school-based counselling can support pupils experiencing anxiety, family conflict and difficulties engaging in lessons.

Please note: This is an anonymised composite case study, adapted from counselling practice to protect the confidentiality of the student and their family. Names and identifying details have been changed.

The concern

A 14-year-old student was referred for counselling after school staff became concerned about her emotional wellbeing. She was often unable to stay in class, was frequently tearful, and was experiencing panic attacks during the school day.

In the first session, the young person described feeling overwhelmed by conflict at home. She was finding it difficult to sleep, concentrate, maintain friendships and feel hopeful that things could improve. She also disclosed self-harm and suicidal thoughts, which were responded to immediately through appropriate safeguarding procedures.

How counselling helped

The counsellor provided a safe, confidential and boundaried space where the young person could talk openly without fear of judgement. Early work focused on helping her feel more grounded and better able to regulate strong emotions.

Through regular sessions, she began to explore the impact of ongoing family arguments and how these were affecting her anxiety, school attendance, relationships and sense of safety. The work helped her recognise triggers, understand her emotional responses and practise strategies to soothe herself when she felt overwhelmed.

Working safely with family and school

Where risk was disclosed, the counsellor worked in line with safeguarding responsibilities, ensuring the relevant adults were informed and given guidance on how to keep the young person safe. This meant the young person could continue to feel heard while also receiving the protection and support she needed.

As trust developed, the counsellor also supported a carefully managed session with a parent. The aim was to help both parent and child feel listened to, reduce circular arguments and begin practising a calmer way of communicating at home.

The difference counselling made

Over time, the young person became calmer, more reflective and more able to manage difficult feelings. Incidents of self-harm reduced significantly, suicidal thoughts ceased, and she described feeling validated and more hopeful that change was possible.

Following the parent session, communication at home began to improve. The young person reported that things were going better than expected, and the family started to consider spending more time together again. Although further support may still be helpful, counselling created a meaningful shift at a point when the situation had felt stuck and intolerable.

Why this matters for schools

When students are struggling emotionally, the impact is often seen first in school: difficulty remaining in lessons, changes in behaviour, panic, withdrawal, reduced concentration or attendance concerns. Counselling gives young people a safe space to make sense of what is happening, while also helping schools respond in a thoughtful and safeguarding-aware way.

Our school counselling service works alongside pastoral teams, safeguarding leads and families to support young people’s emotional wellbeing, reduce barriers to learning and create opportunities for positive change.

Case study 2

How Counselling Can Support Students to Stay Engaged in School

When a student is finding school overwhelming

A sixth form student was referred for counselling after staff noticed that they were finding the school environment increasingly difficult to manage. The student had recently experienced a period of significant change and was struggling with anxiety, sensory overwhelm and the demands of lessons and transitions during the school day.

At times, the student needed to leave lessons because they felt unable to remain in the classroom. This was affecting attendance, learning and confidence. Staff were concerned that, without the right support, the student could become increasingly isolated or disengaged from school.

Building regulation, confidence and trust

Through regular counselling sessions, the student was supported to notice the early signs of anxiety and stress, understand what was happening in their body, and develop practical strategies to help them calm and re-regulate.

As the counselling relationship developed, the student became more able to reflect on their thoughts, feelings and responses to pressure. Sessions also created space to explore identity, possible neurodivergence, sensory needs and how to ask for support in a way that felt manageable.

The work moved at the student’s pace. Some sessions focused on immediate coping strategies; others allowed for deeper reflection once trust and emotional safety had been established.

Working alongside the school

While counselling is confidential, there were opportunities, with the student’s agreement, to think carefully about how their needs could be communicated to trusted members of staff. This helped the student feel more understood and supported within the school environment.

The counselling input also supported wider pastoral care by helping staff understand how anxiety and overwhelm could affect behaviour, attendance and engagement. This enabled a more compassionate and consistent response from school.

The difference additional sessions can make

This work would not have been possible within a very short-term model alone. Additional sessions gave the student time to build trust, practise regulation strategies, make sense of their experiences and develop the confidence to communicate their needs.

Over time, the student became more able to remain in lessons, manage transitions and engage in helpful conversations about support. Schools often tell us that this kind of sustained, relationship-based counselling can make a meaningful difference to attendance, wellbeing and learning.

A school perspective

“Counselling helped the student to understand their anxiety and develop strategies they could use during the school day. We saw a positive change in their ability to stay in lessons, cope with transitions and talk to staff about what they needed. Having access to additional sessions meant the support could continue long enough to make a real difference.”

Our school counselling service offers a safe, confidential space where students can explore what is affecting them and develop the tools they need to participate more fully in school life.

Case study 3

Helping a Primary-Aged Child Make Sense of Big Feelings

Background

“Ben” was a primary-aged boy who was referred to counselling because adults around him were worried about his behaviour, learning and emotional wellbeing. In class he could become restless, leave his seat, argue with adults and sometimes distress other children. At other times he appeared withdrawn, avoided written work and said he was “stupid” when tasks felt difficult.

Ben’s teachers noticed that his behaviour often increased when he felt under pressure, particularly during literacy tasks or when there were changes to routine. His parents described him as loving and funny at home, but also quick to become upset or angry. Everyone wanted to understand what was happening underneath the behaviour rather than simply respond to the behaviour itself.

Starting Counselling Safely

Before counselling began, the counsellor met with Ben’s parents and the school’s designated contact to agree how the work would be held safely. Ben was given a child-friendly explanation of counselling: it was a private space where he could use talking, play, sand and art to show what things felt like inside.

The counsellor explained confidentiality in simple language. Ben was told that the details of his sessions would not be shared with adults unless he wanted help sharing something, or unless the counsellor was worried that he or someone else was not safe. This helped Ben understand that counselling was private, but not secret in a way that would prevent adults from protecting him.

Using Sand and Creative Work

Ben found it difficult to explain his feelings directly, so the counsellor offered a sand tray, small figures, drawing materials and story-making. In early sessions, Ben created repeated scenes in the sand: a small figure was trapped between a “storm monster” and a “school tower”. Another figure stood outside the tray, watching but unable to help.

Through gentle reflection, the counsellor helped Ben notice that the trapped figure seemed to want two opposite things: to do well and please adults, but also to escape when the work felt too hard. Ben began to describe the “storm monster” as the angry part of him and the “school tower” as the part that felt watched, judged and frightened of getting things wrong.

As the work developed, Ben used clay, superhero drawings and sand scenes to show different parts of himself: the part that wanted to learn, the part that felt ashamed, the part that got angry first, and the part that wanted adults to understand. This creative distance allowed him to explore internal conflict without feeling blamed or exposed.

Working With Parents and School Staff

The counsellor kept Ben’s session content confidential, but with Ben’s knowledge shared broad themes with parents and school staff. For example, adults were helped to understand that Ben’s angry behaviour often appeared when he felt ashamed, overwhelmed or afraid of failing.

Together, the adults agreed small changes: giving Ben advance warning before transitions, reducing public correction, offering short movement breaks, using calm choices rather than repeated verbal instructions, and noticing effort rather than only finished work. Parents also used similar language at home, helping Ben name his “storm feeling” before it became too big.

Safeguarding and care around the student

During the work, Ben shared some worries about feeling “bad” and not wanting to come to school on difficult days. The counsellor explored these carefully and followed the school’s safeguarding procedures. There was no indication of immediate harm, but the concerns were discussed appropriately with the safeguarding lead so that the adults around Ben could monitor his wellbeing and respond consistently.

This helped Ben experience adults as a team rather than as separate people who only noticed problems. Confidentiality was respected, while safeguarding and communication remained active parts of his care.

What Changed

Over time, Ben became more able to recognise when he was moving into a “storm”. He began to ask for a break, use drawing to show frustration, and accept help before leaving the classroom or arguing. His learning difficulties did not disappear, but the emotional pressure around learning reduced. Staff reported fewer incidents, quicker recovery after upset and more moments when Ben could stay with a task.

Ben’s parents described him as more able to talk about school and less likely to say he was “bad”. In a later sand tray, the trapped figure was no longer alone. Ben placed a helper figure nearby and built a bridge out of stones. He said, “He can still get cross, but now he knows where to go.”