Ruth Jacobs

Starting difficult conversations with young people can feel incredibly daunting, especially when the topic is something as sensitive as self-harm, eating difficulties, or emotional distress. It’s completely natural to feel unsure, worried about saying the wrong thing, or even afraid of what you might hear. But these conversations are so important. Avoiding them can leave young people feeling like there isn't anyone safe to talk to, while approaching them with care can open a space for...

It’s really easy to feel frustrated if your young person constantly avoids what seem like simple requests; getting out of bed on time, starting homework before the last minute, or replying when you ask them how their day was. It’s easy to assume they’re being difficult or lazy. But there’s almost always a reason behind demand avoidance, and it usually comes back to anxiety, overwhelm, or fear about the task itself rather than stubbornness. We all avoid things sometimes! When was the last time...

We often assume December is a lull in the academic year, a gentle winding-down, a time of festive calm before the return of January commitments. But for many young people self-harm doesn’t pause. Rather it goes underground. The closer we get to the holidays, the harder it becomes for schools to see the signs, and the more likely young people are to carry their distress into the new year. The current situation A mapping report published last November found that self-harm and eating disorder...