ELSA Network - Should I be concerned

[DontAskIDontKnow]

My dd (9) has been sent home with a letter saying that she’s going to be having sessions with the school Emotional Literacy Support Assistant. I’ve had a quick look through the resources on the website for the organisation that provides the training for this role in the school; www.Elsanetwork.org

I’ve not seen anything that talks about the gender woo, but dd has short hair and plays football, so I am concerned that an over-enthusiastic believer in gender ideology might see her as someone that needs transing.

I’m going to speak to the school and see if there’s anything, other than her getting upset about forgetting her lunch today, that’s made them decide she needs the extra support. It would be nice to be armed if there’s evidence that the training that the TA received means they should be kept away from my daughter.

I've not heard anything bad about Elsas.

My experience of Elsas has had no crossover with gender ideology

Normally else is emotional support if a child is struggling.

ELSAs don’t deal with gender identity- I’d be amazed if it wasn’t seen as too specialist for them.

It’s emotions work.

DD was referred to the ELSA programme when she was in Junior school.
There was no gender politics at all, despite it being very much in ascent then. They offer support and guidance for children who aren’t quite as resilient, or are struggling with relationships, sometimes as a result of some trauma, as was the case with DD. She actually loved the sessions and they helped her recovery.

My son had some sessions with the ELSA lead - he was having a few wobbles due to lots of stuff and she has been fantastic. Ours had nothing to do with gender woo. The school should have communicated why she is being referred for emotional literacy though. I have nothing but praise - it was one on one and gave my son a bit of space to relax away from others, she gave him some techniques to relax and it was just all very positive.

Thanks everyone! That’s really reassuring. I’m going to call the school now and ask why exactly she’s been referred.