Ms Jenny Gannon:

Parents trust the home-school liaison teachers and they will sit down with us and tell us about what is causing anxiety or what the main triggers are for children. We have more time than the class teacher or the principal, who have many other things to look after during their day. We can liaise with classroom teachers and if a child gives a sign that they need to go outside for a moment, do their breathing technique or go to the "quieten down" space in a room we can intervene at an early point in their anxiety trip. The existing programmes also help in this regard. The HSCL also feeds into care teams within schools and into the overall school support structure and we can help inform on where anxiety is more likely. Our relationship with parents also helps the process.