Education specific approaches – inclusive policy & practice

Inclusion isn’t about treating everyone the same – it’s about ensuring everyone gets what they need to thrive by introducing reasonable adjustments. There is much that individual team members can do to make things easier for PDAers in your setting – and its much more likely to be affective if everyone adopts changes as a matter of policy. If you are an individual teacher, support worker, or team member in an educational setting you might find it helpful to share the information in the following section with your leadership team. Personal practice section after this covers things you can do that make a difference as an individual practitioner even without this support.

Creating a PDA-friendly environment isn’t just about individual educators making changes – it’s about embedding flexibility and inclusion into the DNA of the whole setting. That means reviewing policies, building staff understanding, and creating systems that are responsive, not rigid.

Create a culture where personalised support is normalised. Explain to peers that different students have different needs, and that’s okay. This promotes empathy, not resentment, and strengthens your whole community.

Leadership and culture – a whole team commitment

Senior leaders play a vital role in shaping how PDA is understood and supported. When school leaders ensure a whole team commitment to inclusion and model flexible thinking, value staff insights and prioritise inclusive practices, it sends a powerful message: this is everyone’s responsibility, not just the SENCO’s.

Commission training on PDA for the whole setting – ideally co-produced or delivered with people who have lived experience – helps to build shared language, understanding and empathy. Include all staff, not just teaching teams. Office, lunch and support staff often have meaningful interactions with students that are overlooked in traditional training and will benefit from understanding different approaches.

Good teaching practice for PDAers suggests that using reflective practice to understand a student’s strengths, needs and responses to situations, then teaching using an empathetic low arousal approach improves outcomes. Developing a reflective culture also means making space for conversations about what’s working and what isn’t. That includes being honest about when things go wrong, supporting and empowering staff to adapt practices without fear of blame.

Behaviour and inclusion

Behaviour policy systems that rely on reward and sanction models, restraint or positive behaviour support (PBS) systems don’t work for PDAers. What looks like non-compliance is usually a stress response – not defiance. A policy that insists on consistency at all costs can become a barrier to access and belonging.

It’s worth considering whether to replace “zero tolerance” with a commitment to understanding. Focusing on relational safety, not rule enforcement. Reviewing how you use isolation, restraint or exclusion – and asking whether these approaches create safety or fear.

Instead of public praise, stickers or points, consider using private, individual feedback. Recognising effort and progress in a way that doesn’t feel like control or expectation can be very effective.

Attendance and emotional wellbeing

Attendance can be a major challenge for PDA learners, often because the learning environment feels unsafe, overstimulating or inflexible. Emotional-based school avoidance (EBSA) is common, and punitive approaches, including exclusion, can do real harm.

Adapt attendance policies reframing absence as a health or SEN issue, not as truancy. Recording anxiety as a legitimate medical condition can help when seeking assessments or support. Work closely with students and families to understand what’s going on, validating student contributions and co-create gradual return plans that include shorter days, flexible entry points or time-limited goals.

It’s also helpful to appoint key adults, alongside tutors, who build trust with the student and can check in with daily. This consistency builds a sense of security and helps the school stay attuned to shifting needs.

Planning for EBSA and staged returns

Emotionally based school avoidance (EBSA) is increasingly recognised as a significant barrier to learning, particularly for neurodivergent students, including those with a PDA profile. EBSA isn’t a sign of disengagement – it’s a stress response. For some students, being in school becomes so emotionally or physically overwhelming that attendance itself becomes impossible.

A flexible, compassionate approach to EBSA can make the difference between recovery and long-term school refusal. This means recognising the reasons behind the avoidance – not punishing the behaviour – and working collaboratively to build a sustainable plan for re-engagement.

A staged return should focus on the student’s wellbeing, rather than ticking attendance boxes. Successful plans are co-created with students and families, and balance flexibility with clarity.

Key principles include:

understanding what the student finds difficult – this may include sensory overload, social pressure, rigid routines or sudden changes
agreeing realistic goals and a gradual increase in attendance or participation
identifying key adults who can provide emotional safety and continuity
offering alternative learning spaces, flexible start times or shorter days
making room for autonomy in the process, so the student feels involved, not coerced

The Department for Education’s Working together to improve school attendance (2022) recognises that “pupils with long term health conditions or additional needs” may need individualised support plans.

Schools do not need a formal diagnosis to offer this support.

Leadership teams play a key role in shaping how EBSA is understood and responded to. It is vital that EBSA is not treated as truancy or defiance. Instead, staff should be supported to recognise the signs of emotional burnout, masking, and sensory distress – especially in students who may not openly express what they’re experiencing.

Strategic planning should include:

training on EBSA and school-related anxiety
reviewing attendance policies to ensure they reflect a trauma-informed approach
ensuring communication between SENCOs, class staff and families is clear, consistent and compassionate
embedding flexibility into the culture, not just the crisis response

Creating a school environment that anticipates and accommodates EBSA doesn’t just support the students who are already struggling – it also helps to prevent burnout in those who are close to the edge.

Uniform and sensory access

For a student with sensory sensitivities, uniform rules can be the difference between attending and not. Where uniform is causing distress, adapting rather than enforcing is an effective approach – similar colours but in softer fabrics, preferred shoes, or permission to wear personal sportswear instead of branded kit.

Applying the same logic to other parts of the day – lunch halls, corridors, changing rooms, outdoor spaces – and working with students to identify where changes could reduce overwhelm can make a real difference to a student’s ability to cope.

Reviewing your sensory environment is also helpful. Look at lighting (is it too bright or flickering?), noise levels (can these be reduced?), and temperature (can students regulate this themselves?). Sensory-friendly environments benefit everyone – not just PDAers.

Student voice and shared decision-making

For PDA learners, being heard isn’t just empowering – it’s protective. Feeling ignored, coerced or left out of conversations can increase anxiety and lead to disconnection from learning altogether. Many PDAers experience a strong sense of autonomy and fairness. When decisions are made about them without their input, it can feel unsafe or controlling. Trust grows when students (and their families) are involved, not just informed.

A setting wide approach that centres around the student voice benefits everyone – not just PDAers. When students know they can ask for flexibility or speak up about what’s hard, it creates a more inclusive and emotionally safe learning environment for all.

Many students, particularly those with demand avoidant profiles, have experienced not being believed or being told their needs are unreasonable. This can lead to masking, withdrawal or pushback. Actively involving students in decisions that affect them helps reduce these risks. It says: we see you, we respect you, and we want to work with you.

Building student voice into the settings culture also makes flexibility feel normal – not a special exception. This removes stigma and encourages all students to share when something isn’t working, whether it’s about learning, the environment or relationships. You might consider trying:

Regularly checking in with students about what’s working and what’s not – not just during formal reviews, but in everyday conversations.
Offering safe, private ways for students to share feedback or ask for changes (written options, visuals or trusted staff).
Including students in setting learning goals and identifying what support they feel they need.
Keeping students informed about decisions, especially around changes to routines or support plans.
Inviting them to participate in annual reviews, tutorials and disability advisor meetings – and respect their choice to opt out or attend in a way that feels safe.

When student voice is embedded in a settings culture, it doesn’t rely on one relationship or one teacher. Instead, it becomes part of how the setting values equity and agency – giving all students the chance to shape their learning journey.

EHCPs, internal support plans and reviewing support

Some students with a PDA profile will have an EHCP (IDP, CSP, Statement, etc) but these plans may not always reflect the student’s real needs. In some cases, autism-specific strategies such as visual timetables or behaviour charts can be counterproductive, especially when they are experienced as demands or control mechanisms.

It’s important to document any adjustments that have been put in place, whether through an EHCP or internal support plan, and share these with all team members and set a regular review period to ensure they are working. This offers a good framework for collaboration and whole school practice. It’s helpful to record both priority and non-negotiable adjustments for students.

If an EHCP is in place but the student is not coping, staff should work with families and SENCOs to identify what isn’t working and consider whether a review is needed. The EHCP should reflect the student’s communication style, emotional regulation needs, sensory sensitivities, and their preferred ways of learning. Where no EHCP is in place, but there are persistent unmet needs, school staff can initiate a statutory assessment request.

The PDA Society provides guidance on including PDA-specific information in EHCP applications and reviews.

Unfortunately, no single provision is likely to hold the key for PDAers so it’s important to recognise that even when taking account reasonable adjustments some students may still struggle in your placement, and they may need a different type of provision. Working with families to look at new options and providing evidence to support this change will be helpful.

Timetabling, curriculum and assessment

PDAers often have a spiky profile – with strengths in some areas and big challenges in others. Learning is rarely linear, and students may need more time, more flexibility or more relevance to stay engaged.

Look for ways to build student interests into the curriculum. Offer flexible approaches to timetabling – like co-planning the day, integrating rest periods, or creating opt-out options for events that feel too demanding. Think carefully about how academic progress is measured, and consider evidence based tools like the SCERTS model or Engagement for Learning Framework to reflect non-linear growth. The CAST universal design for learning framework may also be used to create customised goals, assessments, methods and materials.

Homework can also be a flashpoint. If “home is for recovery”, allow alternatives – such as completing work in school or offering extended deadlines.