HCPC-registered Occupational Therapy and accredited Psychological Therapies, offered alongside separate holistic wellbeing support.

Children living in residential care may have complex sensory, relational and emotional needs shaped by developmental trauma, disrupted attachment, neurodivergence and previous experiences of instability.

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Mind In2 Action works collaboratively with children’s homes and residential care providers to understand not only the needs of each child, but also the wellbeing, stress responses and sensory preferences of the staff supporting them.

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We believe that children are best supported by adults who feel safe, regulated, understood and equipped to respond consistently.

 

Supporting the Adults Around the Child

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Residential care can place significant emotional and sensory demands on staff. Noise, unpredictability, competing needs and repeated exposure to distress can affect each person differently.

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Our systemic approach helps teams explore:

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• Individual stress responses and signs of dysregulation

• Staff members’ own sensory preferences and sensitivities

• How adult regulation can affect the child’s nervous system

• The importance of co-regulation, predictability and felt safety

• Factors that may contribute to conflict, overwhelm or blocked care

• Practical ways to support staff wellbeing and resilience

• How to develop a more consistent, reflective team approach

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This is not about judging staff responses. It is about helping teams recognise what happens within their own nervous systems so that they are better placed to remain calm, connected and emotionally available when a child is struggling.

 

Understanding the Child Beneath the Behaviour

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Behaviour is often a form of communication. What appears to be challenging, controlling or avoidant behaviour may reflect sensory overload, fear, unmet needs or a nervous system responding to perceived threat.

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We help teams consider what may be happening beneath the behaviour and identify practical ways of supporting the child’s sensory and emotional regulation.

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Our work draws upon:

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• Occupational Therapy

• Sensory Attachment Intervention principles

• Sensory Integration principles

• The Just Right State Programme

• Psychology-informed and trauma-informed approaches

• Relational and integrative therapeutic practices

• Nervous-system regulation and co-regulation

• Our VITA Life Framework

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Support can be provided to staff groups, smaller teams, groups or individual children, depending on the needs of the home.

 

Creating Nurturing Indoor and Outdoor Environments

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The physical environment can significantly influence a child’s sense of safety, regulation and ability to participate in everyday life.

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We work alongside children and staff to review how indoor and outdoor spaces are experienced and how they might be developed into more nurturing, sensory-supportive environments.

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This may include:

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• Creating calming and regulating spaces that do not feel punitive

• Considering noise, lighting, colour, texture, movement and visual demands

• Providing opportunities for safe physical activity and purposeful movement

• Developing sensory gardens and nature-based spaces

• Creating areas for connection, creativity and shared activities

• Offering different spaces for alerting, organising and calming experiences

• Helping children identify and communicate what supports them

• Developing practical sensory resources that can be integrated into daily routines

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Recommendations are tailored to the children, staff, available environment and resources of each home.

 

Individual and Group Support

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We can work directly with an individual child when specialist assessment or intervention is needed. We can also provide group-based activities that promote regulation, connection, confidence and shared enjoyment.

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Support may include:

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• Specialist sensory attachment assessment and individual recommendations

• Sensory and emotional regulation sessions

• The Just Right State Programme

• Child-specific consultation and staff coaching

• Therapeutic sensory groups

• Nature-based and creative activities

• Practical co-regulation strategies

• Staff training and reflective sessions

• Environmental reviews and development plans

• Collaboration with families, schools and the wider professional network

 

Building Trust and Supporting Future Transitions

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When children experience greater consistency, felt safety and understanding, they may become better able to tolerate everyday demands, build trusting relationships and participate more fully in home, education and community life.

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A regulated and nurturing environment can help reduce the frequency or intensity of distressed behaviour, strengthen relationships and create a more stable foundation for the child’s next steps.

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Whether the child is preparing to return to family, move into foster care, transition to another placement or progress towards greater independence, our aim is to help the child and the adults around them approach that transition with greater understanding, confidence and continuity.

 

A Whole-Home Approach

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Our VITA Life Framework—Value, Invest, Transform and Accomplish—threads through our work.

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We begin by recognising the value of every child and staff member. We invest in relationships, shared understanding and sustainable change. We support transformation through practical, realistic approaches and help children, staff and services accomplish outcomes that are meaningful within everyday life.

 

Discuss Your Service’s Needs

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We welcome enquiries from children’s homes, residential care providers, registered managers, responsible individuals and commissioning teams.

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Support can be commissioned for an individual child, a staff team or as part of a wider whole-home development programme.  If you would like to find out more, download our family support information leaflet here, and book a free 20-minute consultation with us (here). We’d be happy to talk through your service needs and explore whether our approach could be a good fit.