Online parenting support for anxiety course
The BRAVEaid Method
We help parents move from protecting their child from experiencing anxiety to confidently guiding them through it using practical, evidenced-based strategies.
A six-week, live online coaching programme for parents of primary-school age children, starting in November 2026 - six places available. The investment is normally £850 but for our November programme, we will be offering this at £495.
Support your child to separate for school, settle at bedtime and cope with everyday situations that make may make them feel anxious. Learn what is going on in your child's brain and body but as importantly, understand what is going on in your brain and body so that you remain steady yourself when you see their anxiety start to rise. Learn how to guide your child through their episodes of anxiety without reinforcing it or second-guessing your next steps.
When Your Child’s Episodes of Anxiety Starts Controlling Family Life
If your child’s anxious episodes are starting to shape your family life, you’ll likely recognise this.
- You’re at the school gate, trying to stay calm while they cling to you and say they can’t go in.
- They talk about going to a party all week… and then when you arrive, they won’t go through the door.
- You sign them up to a club they asked for, organise everything around it… and on the day, they won’t get out of the car.
- Bedtime stretches on for hours. You sit with them, answer the same questions, try to leave without setting everything off again.
You find yourself saying things like "just try", "you’ll be fine", or "do you want to come home?" - and not really knowing which is the right thing to say.
You’re constantly second-guessing yourself.
Am I helping… or making this worse?
And underneath that, a quieter worry remains: what if this doesn’t improve?
What a combined experience of over 20 years working with children and families in the NHS has shown us:
We're Polly and Annette.
We’ve worked extensively with children and families drawing on our core professions in children's social work and specialist public health nursing (5-19 years), along with trainings in EMDR and CBT.
We have spent the past 10 years working side-by-side in the field of childhood anxiety as senior clinicians in NHS specialist mental health services (CAMHS) gaining a deep understanding of how anxiety actually shows up day to day and which strategies and skills make a real difference in children's and parent's lives. Not just in theory.
How to work through child anxiety?
(and why it sometimes doesn’t shift!)
What we see, again and again, is this:
Parents doing everything they can to support their child…
but stuck in a pattern that doesn’t change.
Not because they’re doing anything wrong.
But because what feels like helping in the moment is often what’s keeping the pattern going.
What does this actually look like?
It usually isn’t obvious. It shows up in small, everyday moments.
- You get to the party. They freeze. So you stay with them… or leave early.
- They’re anxious at bedtime. So you stay until they fall asleep.
- They say they feel unwell before school. So you give them a day off.
In the moment, these responses feel right.
But each time it happens, their brain is learning:
"That was too much for me."
"I couldn’t cope."
"I needed someone to get me out."
That’s how the pattern forms.
Not through one big moment, but through these repeated, everyday experiences.
And over time, that pattern strengthens - often without anyone realising it's happening.
What's actually going on?
This isn’t a behaviour problem (no matter how many ‘well-meaning’ family members tell you so).
It’s a nervous system response.
Your child’s body has learned that certain situations feel unsafe.
So it reacts - quickly and automatically.
And when the situation is avoided, the body settles.
That relief is what wires the anxiety in.
So the goal isn’t to remove anxiety completely.
It’s to help your child learn:
“I can feel this… and still cope.”
Why working with you changes everything
Most approaches focus on the child.
What we know - from both research and clinical practice - is that parents are central to how this pattern shifts.
Not because you’ve caused the anxiety.
But because your response is one of the most powerful ways to change it.
When you understand what’s happening, and have a clear way to respond, things start to move.
How does The BRAVEaid Method address child anxiety?
This isn’t about adding more layers of information. It’s about simplifying the science to help you apply the right approach consistently to guide your child through their episodes of anxiety without reinforcing it, enabling YOU to break free from old looped patterns that have developed.
The BRAVEaid Method, developed by Polly and Annette brings together their knowledge and expertise alongside evidenced-based tools to give parents a clear, step-by-step road map to support their child through their episodes of anxiety.
The BRAVEaid Method starts in November 2026
The investment for this is normally £850 but for our November programme we will be offering a reduction to £495.00
The BRAVEaid Method follows our practice-based evidenced framework:
B - Build Your Understanding
R - Remain Steady Yourself
A - Anchor Their Capability
V - Verify Brave Steps
E - Encourage Brave Behaviour
Week 1
Introduction
This introductory week sets out the founding principles of our BRAVEaid methodology, the evidence-based strategies we will use in the coming weeks and generally gives time for our small number of parents to get to know Polly and Annette, as well as each other.
Week 2
B - Build Your Understanding
You learn what’s actually happening in your child’s brain and body, so you can stop second-guessing how to respond when your child's anxiety rises and start understanding the biology of what's really going on.
Week 3
R - Remain Steady Yourself
You learn how to notice your own nervous system and start bringing your awareness to the patterns that hold behaviors in place so you can begin to pause and offer a different response when your child's anxiety rises. When a parent is escalated themselves, or over-reassuring, or making lots of accommodations for their child, it can feed the parent-child anxiety cycle. This step changes that.
Week 4
A - Anchor Their Capability
You’ll know exactly how to get inside your child's worry and learn how to offer them proof that they can handle it. You are likely to be feeling more confident holding space for your child's feelings and emotions and guide them through these.
Week 5
V - Verify Brave Steps
You gently and progressively help your child face what feels hard, without overwhelming them. We work with you to build your child's individual step by step guide (the ladder) to break down their fear or worry. This is how the avoidance cycle breaks and confidence starts to build.
Week 6
E - Encourage Brave Behaviour
You will bring all the learning from the past weeks together and reflect on how you, as a parent, have moved from protecting your child from experiencing anxiety to confidently guiding them through it. The understanding you will have gained and the skills you have developed will be used everyday going forward. And here's the bonus point - if you have other children you can map this learning onto them to grow their confidence too.
Each week, you’re supported in two ways.
Monday sessions (10–11am)
These are focused, practical teaching sessions.
We break down what’s actually happening with your child’s anxiety and give you clear, specific strategies to start using at home straight away.
You’ll understand:
- why avoidance happens
- what actually helps children build confidence
Mondays sessions (11–12 noon)
These are reflective, implementation sessions.
This is where you bring your real situations.
We help you think through what’s happening in your family, adjust what you’re doing and support you as you put things into practice.
This part matters. Because knowing what to do is one thing. Doing it, consistently, in real life is where change happens.
You’ll also have a workbook to help you stay focused and apply what you’re learning, as well as access to session recordings so you can revisit anything you need.
In total, you’ll receive 12 hours of live, clinician-led support.
This is a small, focused group of 6 parents where you’ll be supported as you work through this with your own child.
This programme is likely a good fit if
Your child is primary-school age and anxiety is affecting everyday situations like school, sleep or social activities.
You’ve already tried different approaches, but nothing has led to consistent change.
You’re looking for a clear, structured way forward, not more guesswork.
This programme isn’t designed for
Anxiety rooted in major trauma that requires specialist one-to-one support.
Parents looking for an approach based only on reassurance, without gradually helping their child face challenges.
What Changes
Over time, parents often notice:
- Their child is more able to go into school, stay at activities, and manage separation.
- Bedtime becomes shorter and less dependent.
- Avoidance reduces, and confidence builds gradually.
- And importantly, they feel more confident in how they respond without constantly second-guessing themselves.
If You’re Considering This
Please note that:
- You don’t need to have everything figured out.
- But if you recognise these patterns, it’s worth addressing them early.
- Because they rarely stay the same on their own.
- The BRAVEaid Method gives you a clear way to start changing what happens next.
