Why
At Green Sparks we believe anyone can experience poor mental health when their social or emotional needs are not met. We want to offer help while outdoors and doing, rather than asking children to sit indoors trying to find words for what they are experiencing. We want to be part of supporting children to understand that they weren't broken to begin with, and helping them learn how to find comfort and calm.
How
We offer activity based emotional support. This will look like an hour or two hour long session where a practitioner works one to one with a child completing an activity or activities together that involved their shared attention and focus. The activity or activities will be tailored to the specific interests and sensory needs of the child. Sessions start with a check in to understand where the child is emotionally on that particular day, and end with a check out to recognise and acknowledge the impact the session has had and anything the child might need moving forward.
Underneath the surface we are drawing on different areas of knowledge to help us make sense of what children are experiencing and communication, both verbally and non-verbally. We apply the principles of Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy in our practice. We complete training with Sensory Integration Education which supports us to recognise, understand and respond to children's sensory processing needs. We have training and professional experience in working with children who have experienced trauma and loss and who have difficulties in forming secure attachment relationships. We complete training with the National Autistic Society and have professional experience in working with children and adults who are neurodiverse. We use the PACE framework to help us manage behaviour during sessions.
What
We operate in West Dorset and travel to children at school or at home, rather than asking them to come to us. We work in school or domestic gardens or community green spaces. At present we are offering the following services; Home and school based support with transport where required for children whose mental health needs are making it hard for them to attend school (also known as Emotionally Based School Avoidance or EBSA)
Inclusion support in school for children who have social, emotional or learning needs that are making it hard for them to manage in class
One to one sessions for children who need support to improve their levels of emotional resilience, social skills and/or emotional literacy
We also provide services via the Dorset Family's Matter programme and Dorset Council's Supporting Progress and Inclusion Framework.
In the business year 2025 - 2026 we supported twenty-one children and their families, successfully maintaining all of them within a mainstream educational setting. We partnered with nine schools to deliver these services, sharing both our skills and expertise and equipment to further progress.

We share feedback on a weekly basis in writing with our stakeholders which include children, parents and wider family members, schools and supporting professionals from the local authority and health agencies. We also regularly attend and/or chair meetings of the supporting adults for each child we work with to keep support under review and relevant.

We consult with and seek feedback from schools, families, referrers and commissioners and partner organisations on a termly basis. The information received as an outcome of this consultation is used to review and adapt existing services and develop new ones to meet newly identified needs.