Celebrating 10 years of the Pears Family School

The Pears Family School is a leading Alternative Provision (AP) for children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties and their families. Founded in 2014 by Anna Freud, the school has helped many students – often following potentially traumatic events - return to the most appropriate education for them.

What makes the school so unique is how mental health support is built into the curriculum. This helps students recover their psychological and emotional wellbeing and build resilience, often supporting their transition back to mainstream school. For example, in 2022/23, 71% of students who started in September were reintegrated back into mainstream schools.

As we celebrate 10 years of the Pears Family School, families and staff reflect on this milestone and share what the school means to them.

The founding of the school

The school was founded to create, in partnership with parents and carers, innovative solutions for children and young people failing to thrive in schools and prevent exclusions while delivering excellent education.

“Our vision was to create a new AP school that develops genuine working partnerships with parents and carers of the most vulnerable children and young people,” said Brenda McHugh, a Consultant Psychotherapist at Anna Freud who co-founded the school. “This approach enables families to recover, rebuild and reintegrate.”

A £17 million capital campaign to build a new centre for an expanding Anna Freud also funded a bespoke, new home for the school, which was initially located in temporary buildings in Hampstead and Islington. £2.5m was donated by Pears Foundation, now a long-term supporter of the charity. Officially opened in 2019 by Anna Freud’s patron, HRH The Princess of Wales on Rodney Street in Angel, the new centre includes both Anna Freud and the school.

“The Pears Family School provides a much needed and effective intervention for children at risk of permanent exclusion, who are all too often left to struggle without the right help,” said Sir Trevor Pears CMG, Executive Chair of Pears Foundation. “My family and I were delighted to support Anna Freud to relocate the Family School and expand its capacity. We continue to be impressed by the expertise of the school’s dedicated staff and wholeheartedly back Anna Freud in their ambition to disseminate the model more widely.”

A shift in attitude

Students are referred to the school by many different routes and often are experiencing serious emotional, mental wellbeing and behavioural difficulties. They typically have been excluded, are at risk of exclusion, or find it difficult to attend school.

One of the biggest changes families experience when they join Pears Family School is a shift in attitude, particularly around behaviour. One parent said that within the school there is an “acceptance for parents and children together, no more judgement and blame.”

Expert staff in the school are trained to understand the different needs and experiences of students, which means they can provide appropriate, tailored support. One parent described how, before joining the school, her son “had lost a great deal of confidence” as his previous school had a “punitive approach” that wasn’t effective. Now, his “behavioural and socio-emotional needs are not only acknowledged in the Pears Family School but fully supported.”

Others notice positive ripples across their whole family. Another parent reflected: “The last year at Pears Family School has made such a difference for my son and our family. Before coming here my son was not attending school at all, causing the whole family so much stress. He now attends school, and this has taken the pressure and tension away from the relationships in the family.”

Family first

A core tenet of the Pears Family School’s is that families must be at the heart of everything. Parents and carers are invited into the school building and receive training and guidance every week to support their own learning and that of their children.

As outlined in our Thinking Differently manifesto, Anna Freud wants to see more schools and colleges supported to work in partnership with families. This includes investment in programmes delivered in partnership with schools that help parents understand and support their children’s mental wellbeing.

When asked about the training sessions offered in the school, a parent said: “These groups provide a supportive environment in which parents, carers and professionals work closely together to find positive ways in which to best support our children. We are helped with strategies that actually make a difference and it is clear that our thoughts concerns and ideas are fully taken on board by the staff and founders of the school.”

Looking ahead

The Autumn Budget 2024 included a £1 billion increase in funding for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) services. Staff at Anna Freud and the school hope this commitment to improving SEND provision will help to open up conversations about the family school model.

“After 10 years of Pears Family School, we now aim to disseminate best practice for the benefit of the thousands of children facing similar difficulties,” Neil Dawson, Consultant Psychotherapist at Anna Freud and co-founder of the school, said. “We want to use this proven model to support the Department for Education’s ambition to deliver innovative and effective interventions for children and young people at risk of exclusion and to support school staff facing burn out.”

“Hundreds of families have benefitted from the school since it opened 10 years ago. Many of the most vulnerable children and young people have left with increased confidence and stronger relationships with their parents, ready to transition back to the most appropriate education for them”, said Professor Eamon McCrory, Anna Freud CEO. “At Anna Freud, we want all schools and colleges to become mentally healthy. Like Pears Family School, they can do this by creating a school culture that prioritises belonging and relationships, where every student feels included and supported and where staff and families work in partnership.”

Find out more

Visit the Pears Family School website for more information on its approach to Alternative Provision.

At Anna Freud, we want all schools to be mentally healthy. This means creating a school culture that prioritises belonging and relationships, where every student feels included and supported and where staff and families work in partnership.

Learn about our support for schools and colleges