Behaviour Support

Behaviour support uses direct and indirect interventions with young people, families and/or schools to help respond to behaviours that are limiting the young person’s ability to participate as they would like.

A direct intervention might be through a one-to-one session with the young person. Support often involves the clinician working through and supporting the parents, teachers or carers of the young person to understand behavioural and environmental factors and to guide them on how to make changes and put strategies in place over time.

An indirect intervention might be a workshop their parent or teacher attends, so while the parent or teacher is attending in support of the young person, it is called indirect intervention because the young person doesn’t attend.

What approach is used in these interventions?

Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is the approach used. It aims to improve the quality of life of individuals with additional needs who might be at risk of being excluded from settings or activities, or who might harm themselves and others. PBS includes a commitment to providing support that promotes choice, inclusion, and equality of opportunity.

At the core of PBS is the belief that behaviours of concern rarely occur without a reason, and often there are many reasons. 

They are called behaviours of concern (or responsive behaviours) because the person you care for may display behaviours that worry you. They may be actions, words or gestures in response to something important in the person’s personal, social or physical environment.

They can also be referred to behavioural expressions of need. It may be a person’s best attempt to meet their needs, it may be a way of communicating an unmet need, and it can often be a sign that the person is struggling in their environment.

How does Positive Behaviour Support work?

PBS requires active participation from all those involved in the young person’s care. It begins with an assessment and the collection of data. This is the evidence that will be used to guide intervention and make decisions on what might be helpful.

A plan is developed in partnership with the young person and those involved in supporting the person, as these will be people responsible for putting the plan into action, with support from the CDNT. The goal is to make the behaviour of concern irrelevant, inefficient and ineffective.

The plan will include ways of arranging the environment so the person’s needs are met. It will teach skills the person might need to participate in their life meaningfully. It will also teach ways of responding to the behaviours of concern in a safe and supportive manner.

The aim is to help children to learn the skills needed to met their own needs, communicate their preferences and spend time doing activities that are meaningful to them

It takes time and effort, but a bit like the couch to 5k challenge, with consistency and daily practice it gets easier.

Further information

Contact your CDNT for more information on what behaviour supports they offer.

See the following links for more reading:

 

Page last reviewed: 11 November 2025

Next review due: 11 November 2026