Boundaries

Provision and/or strategies: approaches, adjustments and specific interventions expected to be made by settings according to the ages and stages of the CYP

Universal

• Maintain whole-staff agreement on expectations and responses to avoid mixed messages (e.g. through one-page profiles or positive behaviour support plans).
• Embed clear expectations within strong and consistent routines.
• Support understanding of boundaries through predictable structures and responses.
• Communicate boundaries using clear, consistent and developmentally appropriate language, shared across adults to ensure a predictable and cohesive approach.
• Support CYP to understand that boundaries help to create safety, fairness and a sense of belonging.
• Pre-teach expectations and boundaries before new or challenging situations.
• Teach rules and expectations explicitly using clear, concise language supported by visual aids (e.g. rule cards, symbols).
• Break rules into small, teachable components and model each step to reduce cognitive and executive function load.
• Model respectful adherence to agreed boundaries through adult interactions and routines.
• Use structured approaches and visual supports to reinforce clear and consistent expectations.
• Use structured choice-making (e.g. "first-then" language) to support understanding while maintaining a sense of control.
• Build in regular opportunities for practice to consolidate understanding.
• Revisit and rehearse rules frequently through guided practice and repetition.
• Support CYP to apply understanding of boundaries across different contexts and situations.
• Scaffold peer interaction through structured group work and clearly defined roles to support understanding of social rules.
• Recognise and reinforce positive behaviours to promote consistency and clarity.
• Revisit expectations regularly and explicitly reinforce positive behaviour.
• Respond to behaviour in a consistent and predictable manner to strengthen understanding and trust.
• Maintain fairness through calm, measured, and consistent adult responses.
• Support CYP to manage emotional responses to boundaries through reassurance and co-regulation where needed.
• Provide support to repair and restore boundaries following difficulties, prioritising re-engagement with learning.

Targeted

• Provide regular check-ins and pre-corrections (e.g. reminders before transitions or challenging situations) to support routines and promote a sense of safety and security.
• Use social stories and scenario-based learning to present abstract rules and boundaries in concrete, relatable ways.
• Teach "stop-think-act" strategies to strengthen impulse control and decision-making.
• Provide in-the-moment adult prompting and coaching to support CYP in applying boundaries and making appropriate choices.
• Provide regular, structured opportunities to practise applying rules and boundaries in supported contexts.
• Provide structured, adult-supported reflection following difficulties to reinforce understanding of boundaries and future choices.
• Provide graduated support, reducing reliance on adult prompts to build independent understanding and application of boundaries, while supporting CYP to apply and generalise this understanding across different contexts, adults and situations.
• Deliver targeted interventions to develop self-regulation and executive functioning, supporting CYP to understand and apply rules effectively.