Emotional Literacy Support Assistants
ELSAs are Teaching Assistants or Learning Support Assistants who receive six days of additional training from Educational Psychologists on key aspects of emotional literacy as outlined below. ELSAs then receive ongoing supervision from EPE’s Educational Psychologists once every half-term in a local network group of ELSAs.
ELSA is a preventative initiative giving school staff in-depth training and ongoing support to develop the social and emotional well-being of their pupils. Once trained, ELSAs will be able to provide intervention support with pupils who have emerging social, emotional and mental health needs
Training sessions cover the following areas:
- Social skills
- Emotional self-regulation
- Loss and bereavement
- Friendship
- Relationships
- Security
- Self-esteem
- Anxiety and worries
- Thinking skills
- Autism Spectrum Conditions
- Problem-solving
- Anger management
ELSA is a national initiative running in many local authorities across the UK, and beyond. It has an excellent evidence base for its effectiveness and there is a national online support network with which ELSAs can link up to share resources and ideas, in addition to their half-termly supervision meetings.
What will the school gain from participation?
- 6 full days of training for your nominated TA / LSA around social and emotional well-being.
- Support with planning and delivering interventions.
- Supervision support from qualified, registered Educational Psychologists.
What impact does this initiative make for schools?
There has been consistent feedback from schools across the UK that the introduction of ELSAs:
- Makes a significant positive impact on the emotional wellbeing of children and young people
- Supports staff development, with ELSAs frequently commenting on the impact training has had on them, personally as well as professionally
- Helps young people become more self-reflective and better at expressing their needs
- Helps young people to build more positive relationships, with both peers and adults, leading to improved self-esteem and greater success in terms of learning outcomes.
Cost
The current cost of ELSA is £975. This includes:
- 6 full days of initial ELSA training as described above
- An initial package of 4 half-termly supervision sessions following completion of the initial training (mandatory to complete the full training qualification).
- A free copy of the ELSA support manual ‘Emotional Wellbeing: An Introductory Handbook’ (Shotton & Burton; rrp £35.99)
Ongoing annual supervision after the first year to maintain registration is £260 per year (comprising 6 x half-termly supervision sessions).
To register your interest:
Email emilypicken@edpsych4everyone.co.uk by 22/05/2026 if you would like to nominate a member of your staff (or, a second member if you already have an ELSA) for ELSA training,
Please be advised that training availability is limited to 16 places, we would therefore encourage settings to request and confirm their bookings as soon as possible in order to guarantee their training place(s). Applications will be confirmed on a 'first come, first served' basis and cannot be guaranteed if received after the deadline.
For further information on the ELSA initiative please visit: www.elsanetwork.org