For many children and young people, the start of a new school year brings a few nerves. New teachers, different routines, changing friendships and the return to early mornings can all take some getting used to.

Usually, those feelings begin to settle as the days and weeks pass.

But what happens when they don’t?

Emma Davies, Director at Health is One, recently joined BBC Radio 5 Live to discuss Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA), why some children find attending school increasingly difficult, and what parents and schools can do to support them.

What is Emotionally Based School Avoidance?

Emotionally Based School Avoidance describes difficulties attending school where emotional distress or mental health challenges are playing a significant role.

It is important to recognise the difference between a child simply not wanting to go to school and a child who is finding attendance genuinely difficult to manage.

As Emma explained during the interview:

“The avoidance is a solution, not a problem. It’s the young person’s answer to something, and it’s our job to find out what that struggle is.”

That distinction matters.

Rather than focusing only on getting a child through the school gates, EBSA encourages us to ask what is making school feel so difficult in the first place.

When do back-to-school nerves become a concern?

Feeling nervous about returning to school after a long break is not unusual.

The important thing to look at is what happens next.

Emma suggests considering the direction those feelings are travelling. If a child is becoming more distressed several weeks into term rather than gradually settling, there may be something more going on.

“If a child is more distressed in, say, week four than they were on day one, that’s not settling in, that needs attention.”

It can also help to consider how far the worry is reaching into the rest of the child’s life.

Ordinary back-to-school nerves may be closely connected to school itself. More significant anxiety can begin affecting sleep, appetite, friendships, family life or the ability to enjoy evenings and weekends.

Rather than looking at one difficult morning in isolation, look for patterns and changes over time.

Why might a child avoid school?

There is rarely one simple explanation.

EBSA can be connected to anxiety, difficulties with friendships or bullying, academic pressures, sensory overwhelm, changes at home or school, unmet additional support needs and a range of other experiences.

One factor Emma highlighted during the interview was unidentified neurodivergence.

A neurodivergent child may spend much of their school day trying to manage an environment that does not suit the way they experience and process the world. Noise, busy corridors, unpredictable changes, social expectations, transitions and the pressure to mask can all require significant effort.

If those needs have not yet been recognised, the child may not have the adaptations or support that could make school feel more manageable.

Over time, avoiding school can become a way of escaping an environment that feels overwhelming.

This is why understanding what sits underneath the avoidance is so important.

Is EBSA just another label?

During the BBC Radio 5 Live conversation, Emma was asked whether giving school avoidance another label could risk making the situation more entrenched.

A term is only useful if it helps us understand what is happening and respond more effectively.

In the case of EBSA, recognising that a child may be struggling rather than deliberately refusing to cooperate can shift the conversation.

Instead of:

“Why won’t they go to school?”

we can begin asking:

“What is making school feel so difficult?”

That change in perspective can open the door to understanding what the child needs and identifying practical ways to support them.

What can parents do if they are worried?

Start the conversation early.

Parents and schools will not always see the same child. Someone who appears to cope throughout the school day may become distressed or exhausted when they return home. Equally, school staff may notice patterns that are difficult for families to see from home.

Neither perspective tells the whole story on its own.

Sharing information can help everyone build a clearer picture of what the child is experiencing, including when difficulties occur, what appears to trigger them and what helps.

From there, parents and schools can begin discussing targeted support and strategies appropriate to the individual child.

Most importantly, support works best when the adults around a child are working together.

As Emma explained:

“In order to create a sense of predictability and stability for the child to feel that they can be in school, it requires all of the adults around the child to be working together.”

Look beyond attendance

When a child is struggling to attend school, it is understandable that attendance itself quickly becomes the focus.

But attendance figures cannot tell us why a child is struggling.

Looking beneath the behaviour gives us an opportunity to understand what the child may be communicating through their avoidance.

What feels overwhelming? When is the anxiety strongest? Are there particular lessons, environments, transitions or social situations that are difficult? Are there unmet sensory, emotional, learning or neurodivergent needs?

The earlier those questions are explored, the earlier appropriate support can begin.

At Health is One, we provide counselling and psychological wellbeing services for children, young people and families across the UK. We also work alongside families and professionals to better understand the needs behind emotional and behavioural difficulties and identify practical ways forward.

If your child is finding school increasingly difficult, you do not have to wait until things reach crisis point before seeking support.