Become a Thrive Special School
A consistent way to understand, support and evidence social and emotional development for children with complex needs.
Thrive helps your whole team build a shared understanding of each child, so you can respond more effectively, track progress, and evidence impact with confidence.
What does it mean to be a Thrive School?
Becoming a Thrive special school means taking a consistent, whole-school approach to understanding social and emotional development.
Thrive provides a shared framework to understand each child’s development, looking beyond behaviour to what it is communicating, so staff can respond in ways that support development over time, including small-step progress that may not always be immediately visible.
What Thrive Special Schools see
Clearer understanding of each child’s needs
Staff develop a deeper understanding of social and emotional development, helping them interpret behaviour more accurately and respond in ways that support progress.
Greater consistency across teams
A shared framework helps teachers, support staff and wider professionals work in more consistent ways, even across complex, multidisciplinary teams.
Stronger evidence of progress over time
Schools can track small-step and non-linear development, building a clearer picture of progress to support EHCP outcomes, inspection, and conversations with commissioners.
CASE STUDY
Tuition Extra Group
See how Tuition Extra used Thrive to take a wellbeing-first approach, improving engagement and helping young people re-engage with education.
Independently evaluated impact
The Thrive Approach has been independently evaluated by ImpactEd through analysis of over 2,600 schools and a two-year mixed-methods study.
Schools using Thrive show:
For primary leaders, this provides clear, independent evidence to support school improvement, SEND provision and inspection.
The foundations of a Thrive School
Two core elements underpin Thrive and help establish a consistent and practical approach across your school.
At least two members of staff train as Thrive Licensed Practitioners, building in-house expertise to understand social and emotional development and guide targeted support.
Through this training, schools can:
- Deepen your understanding of social and emotional development
- Assess individual need in a structured, consistent way
- Plan targeted, developmentally appropriate support that works in practice
- Support staff to apply Thrive confidently across your setting
In special schools, Thrive-Online is typically used for every child on roll, forming the backbone of assessment, planning, and progress tracking.
Through Thrive-Online, you can:
- Build a clear picture of each child’s developmental profile
- Create personalised action plans linked to need
- Track small-step and non-linear progress over time
- Evidence impact for EHCP reviews, inspection, and commissioning
Your subscription also includes My Thrive Scan, providing a whole school snapshot of wellbeing through two short staff-completed scans.
Learn more about Thrive-Online
Two routes to becoming a
Thrive Special School
DIRECT ROUTE
Thrive Whole School SEMH Provision for Special Schools
The fastest way to get started.
What's included:
- Thrive Licensed Practitioner training for two staff members | £3,382
- Thrive-Online annual subscription | From £450
- Implementation support from a Thrive expert included
Prices exclude VAT.
FUNDED ROUTE (ENGLAND ONLY)
Thrive wellbeing apprenticeships
A levy-funded route that builds expertise over time.
What's included:
- Thrive Licensed Practitioner training plus a Level 5 qualification
- Access to Thrive-Online for the duration of the programme
- On-the-job learning embedded within school practice
From £9,000 £0
To keep Thrive School status after the apprenticeship, schools continue with Thrive-Online or train another apprentice.
Not sure which route is right for you?
Book a conversation with a member of our team to talk through your context, priorities and funding options.
How Thrive can grow in your school
Many special schools build on their foundations over time, deepening expertise and strengthening consistency across teams.
01
Training additional staff
Expand capacity through further Licensed Practitioner training, senior leadership training, whole school inductions and training days.
02
Advanced training
Deepen expertise through advanced training and apprenticeships, strengthening long-term SEND and SEMH leadership.
03
Engaging parents and carers
Train a Family Thrive Course Leader to share the approach with parents and carers in practical, accessible ways.
04
Recognition and excellence
Work towards Thrive Ambassador and School of Excellence status, recognising sustained impact.