Attachment Aware

Attachment Aware Schools Award (AASA) 

At Coombe Hill we place the whole child at the centre of everything we do. Achieving the Platinum level of the Attachment Aware Schools Award (AASA) is a huge milestone and reflects our commitment to understanding pupils’ emotional needs, recognising their experiences and building a trauma-informed, nurturing school community.

What is AASA?

The Attachment Aware Schools Award (AASA) from the AfC Virtual School helps schools embed trauma-informed and attachment-aware practices across the entire school community, from leadership to support staff and from the classroom to the playground.

It is a three-year programme that supports sustained whole-school change. Through AASA schools build the knowledge, skills and culture needed to support children’s emotional wellbeing, regulation and sense of safety and belonging. 

Our journey to Platinum and what it means

• As a “Platinum school” we have not only completed the full AASA programme but embedded its principles deeply into everyday practice.

• Our staff regularly receive training from educational psychologists and our inclusion team on attachment theory, trauma-aware practice and emotion-coaching.

• Our whole school policies, especially behaviour regulation, reflect this trauma-aware, relational approach and aim to understand behaviour as communication, support emotional regulation and promote nurture, not just correction.

• We work with children and families knowing that many pupils bring with them differing life experiences — and we honour each child’s background, history and identity.
  
  

How AASA influences our work at Coombe Hill

Because of AASA we:

• recognise the importance of relationships, trust and emotional safety before academic demands

• support pupils’ emotional regulation and mental health through tailored nurture, ELSA provision and inclusive practices

• plan behaviour regulation with empathy and understanding, focusing on what children need rather than just what they do

• ensure staff have training and awareness so they can meet children’s emotional needs sensitively and consistently

• promote a school culture where every child feels seen, understood and supported — and where families are partners in that support
  
  

Our role as a pioneering school

We are proud to be among the first schools awarded Platinum under AASA, and we are committed to supporting other local schools on their own journey. Because we have developed strong internal expertise and real-life experience, we are well placed to share our practices, training insights and successes with others.

Our aim is not only to give our own pupils a safe, caring and emotionally aware environment but to contribute to a wider movement where all children have the support they deserve.