Some children arrive at your setting carrying experiences no young child should have: abuse, neglect, or a home affected by domestic violence, substance misuse or severe mental illness. This trauma-informed care training for early years teams explains Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), how trauma shapes a young child’s brain, behaviour and relationships, and what you can do day to day to help them feel safe and build resilience.
At its heart is one change of question. Instead of asking “What’s wrong with this child?”, a trauma-informed approach asks “What has happened to this child?”
Why trauma-informed care matters
Trauma is easy to misread. A child who is constantly on edge, cannot sit still and lashes out may be showing hyperarousal. A child who is withdrawn, flat and never seeks comfort may be showing hypoarousal. Both are protective adaptations, and challenging behaviour often communicates an unmet need or an attempt to find control in a world that feels unpredictable. When staff see behaviour as an adaptation rather than wilful misconduct, their response changes, and predictable routines and consistent, nurturing relationships can make your setting a place where children begin to heal.
Understanding ACEs also sharpens safeguarding. It helps practitioners spot potential concerns and respond appropriately, while recognising that not every ACE needs safeguarding intervention. The course links trauma-informed practice to the EYFS principles of a unique child, positive relationships, enabling environments, and learning and development, and to the key person approach.
What’s in the course
- Course overviewThe learning outcomes and how the seven modules build on one another.
- Introduction to ACEsThe three types of ACE, the original ACE Study, prevalence in the UK, the ACE score and its limits, and safeguarding.
- Understanding trauma and its impactAcute, chronic and complex trauma, the stress response and the developing brain, and how trauma shows in behaviour.
- Principles of trauma-informed careSafety, trust, choice, collaboration, building on strengths, and cultural, historical and gender considerations.
- Implementing trauma-informed practiceTrauma-sensitive rooms, regulation toolkits, responding to behaviour, routines, key person attachments and records.
- Working with familiesIntergenerational trauma, sensitive information gathering, the limits of confidentiality and safeguarding.
- Professional practice and self-careSecondary trauma, boundaries, reflective practice, supervision and team wellbeing.
- Policy and procedureReviewing behaviour, safeguarding, key person and family policies through a trauma-informed lens.
- Assessment30 questions. Pass mark 80%. Resit as many times as you need.
What you’ll learn
- The three categories of ACE: abuse, neglect and household dysfunction, and why emotional abuse and emotional neglect are the hardest to see
- What the ACE score captures and what it leaves out, and why it is never a diagnostic tool or a label
- How prolonged stress affects the amygdala, hippocampus and prefrontal cortex in a developing brain
- How to recognise hyperarousal and hypoarousal, and respond while keeping the child’s dignity and sense of safety intact
- How to adjust light, sound, storage and layout, and set up a calm corner and visual schedule
- How to build a personal regulation toolkit with a child, and practise regulation skills during calm moments
- How to work with families with empathy, and be clear from the start about when information may need to be shared
- How to spot the signs of secondary trauma in yourself and colleagues, and use supervision to get support
Who this course is for
- Early years practitioners and key persons
- Room leaders and managers reviewing behaviour, safeguarding and family engagement policies
- Staff working with families affected by ACEs
- Students and apprentices in early years settings
How it works
- OnlineStudy on any device and pick up where you left off.
- 8 lessonsA short overview, then seven modules from understanding ACEs to policy.
- 30-question assessmentPass mark 80%. Resit as many times as you need.
- CertificateIssued when you pass. NFAQ accredited.
Training your team
Children who have experienced trauma need consistent, predictable responses from every adult, so a trauma-informed approach works best when the whole team shares it. Choose the number of learners at checkout, with group rates from 3 learners, or get it as part of the Training Portal for £5 per learner per month. It pairs well with Emotion Coaching and Supporting Self-Regulation and The Toxic Trio.
Frequently asked questions
What are Adverse Childhood Experiences?
Potentially traumatic events in childhood that go beyond ordinary challenges. The course groups them into abuse, neglect and household dysfunction, such as witnessing domestic violence or living with a family member who misuses substances.
Should we work out an ACE score for children in our care?
No. The ACE score is not a diagnostic tool. It does not account for the severity or duration of experiences or for protective factors, so it is one way of understanding a child’s experiences and never a label or a prediction.
Does every ACE need a safeguarding referral?
No. Some ACEs are safeguarding concerns and must be recorded and reported through your setting’s procedures, but not all require safeguarding intervention. Practitioners use professional judgement, guided by policy and procedure.
Does the course look after staff wellbeing too?
Yes. A full module covers secondary trauma, professional boundaries, reflective practice, supervision and what the team and the organisation can do so nobody carries this work alone.
What happens if I don’t pass the assessment?
You can resit it as many times as you need until you pass. Your certificate is issued as soon as you reach the 80% pass mark.
Will this help at Ofsted?
Ofsted does not approve training providers, and the certificate is evidence that you completed the training. The course helps you review your policies and records so they show how you meet individual needs, promote positive behaviour and safeguard children.
