Creating Healing Through Caring, Supportive Settings.
Our SHINE (Supporting Healing In Nurturing Environments) Therapeutic Model enables our staff to work in a way that is grounded in psychological understanding and sensitive to the impact of trauma, shaping how we provide care, support, and education.
SHINE combines the latest evidence and proven approaches to working with children and young people who may have lived through significant adversity and trauma.
Our SHINE (Supporting Healing In Nurturing Environments) Therapeutic Model enables our staff to work in a way that is grounded in psychological understanding and sensitive to the impact of trauma, shaping how we provide care, support, and education.
SHINE combines the latest evidence and proven approaches to working with children and young people who may have lived through significant adversity and trauma.
Our SHINE Therapeutic Model
Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP).
Our SHINE Therapeutic Model is built on Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), created by psychologist Dr Dan Hughesan. DDP is a research-supported, attachment-based approach that helps professionals to better understand young people, work in partnership, and offer support that strengthens positive relationships. This relational focus is essential for establishing trust and creating safe therapeutic spaces where young people can thrive socially, emotionally, and academically.
Across our homes, schools, and supported accommodation, our therapists and psychologists draw on up-to-date neuropsychological research, including the work of Bruce Perry, Daniel Siegel, and Bessel van der Kolk. This informs our clinical thinking, helping us to identify what each young person needs and how best to respond to those needs.
Our Therapists and Psychologists
Support
We see every young person as an individual. By working together across disciplines, we ensure they receive tailored care, learning opportunities, and support that help them to succeed. Our teams focus on truly understanding their specific circumstances so each young person has the best chance to grow and flourish.
Healing
We understand that many of the young people we care for and educate have faced difficult, sometimes traumatic experiences. We recognise how complex these experiences can be and the wide-ranging effects they may have. With patience, understanding, and a DDP-informed approach rooted in PACE.
Nurture
Within our homes, we create nurturing spaces where young people can explore their strengths and build trusting relationships. Our colleagues prioritise warm, compassionate interactions, offering consistency, comfort so every young person knows they matter and can rely on us. .
Environments
Across all our services, we are committed to providing safe, and inclusive environments where young people feel they belong. We pay close attention to how spaces are arranged and experienced, taking into account sensory needs and the ways trauma can affect sensory processing.
Unconditional acceptance sits at the centre of a child’s sense of security. It means welcoming and acknowledging their inner experiences without judgement. Their thoughts and feelings simply exist; they are not inherently right or wrong. Accepting a child’s intentions or emotions does not mean agreeing with behaviour that may be unsafe or harmful to themselves or others.
