Difficult Conversations Toolkit – Scripts & Guidance for Students, Parents, Behaviour & Safeguarding
A complete toolkit for handling challenging conversations confidently, calmly and professionally.
This resource provides ready-made scripts, phrasing, prompts and guidance for the conversations teachers, tutors and pastoral staff find the hardest.
From behaviour escalations to sensitive safeguarding disclosures, this pack gives staff the exact language to use — calm, neutral, de-escalating, and professionally safe.
Designed for all settings: primary, secondary, SEMH, inclusion, pastoral teams and safeguarding leads.
What’s Included
A fully structured guide covering:
Difficult Conversations with Students
Defiance and refusal
Emotional shutdowns
Anxiety spirals
Low-level disruption
Challenging authority
Restorative dialogue scripts
Boundaries & consequences language
Difficult Conversations with Parents & Carers
Behaviour concerns
Academic underperformance
Attendance/punctuality issues
Safeguarding alerts
Sensitive feedback
Managing complaints calmly
Email/phone scripts
Behaviour Management Conversations
De-escalation scripts
“Repair not punish” phrasing
Reset and re-entry conversations
Setting expectations without conflict
Supportive accountability language
Safeguarding & Sensitive Issues
“What to say / what not to say”
Trauma-informed scripts
Keeping disclosures safe
Next steps wording
Staff boundaries and recording guidance
Why This Toolkit Works
Uses calm, neutral, professional language
Reduces anxiety for staff delivering tough messages
Supports ECTs and non-teaching staff
Protects staff by promoting safe phrasing
Encourages consistency across teams
Completely editable
Perfect For:
Teachers
ECTs / trainee teachers
Form tutors
Pastoral teams
Behaviour leads
Safeguarding teams
SEN/SEMH staff
Senior leaders
Bonus Materials (Optional to Include)
Conversation flowcharts
Quick-reference scripts
Do/Don’t phrasing lists
Check out our Ultimate bundle which provides ready-to-use interventions, staff CPD, behaviour systems and pastoral tools designed to improve behaviour culture, strengthen SEMH support, and save schools significant planning time.
Ultimate Pastoral & Behaviour Bundle:
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-13371703
Full Pastoral / SEMH / Behaviour walkthrough:
https://youtu.be/hMq-SpVy2Wo
Get this resource as part of a bundle and save up to 67%
A bundle is a package of resources grouped together to teach a particular topic, or a series of lessons, in one place.
Bundle
The Behaviour Culture Reset System Consistent routines. Clear habits. Structured interventions. Measurable impact
The Behaviour Culture Reset System Consistent routines. Clear habits. Structured interventions. Measurable impact. If your school is experiencing: • Repeated low-level disruption • Inconsistent staff expectations • Students returning to behaviour rooms • Weak follow-up after sanctions • Behaviour systems that don’t stick • Intervention time with little impact This is your complete behaviour intervention framework. Not worksheets. A structured system. What This Actually Solves ✔ Stops repeat behaviour cycles ✔ Teaches behaviour explicitly (not just sanctions it) ✔ Gives staff scripts and routines ✔ Creates consistency across departments ✔ Provides evidence for meetings & reviews ✔ Moves students from reactive to self-regulated The 3-Tier Structure Inside This Bundle Tier 1 – Behaviour Culture & Habits (Whole School) Core Behaviour Habits • Clear routines • Greetings & transitions • Listening & attention • Asking for help • Managing disagreements This builds consistency across classrooms. Tier 2 – Explicit Behaviour Skills Teaching Core Behaviour Skills Curriculum Students are taught: • Emotional regulation • Managing frustration • Respectful disagreement • Online conduct • Friendship skills • Resilience • Grief & loss Because behaviour improves when skills improve. Tier 3 – Structured Intervention Pathways Behaviour Intervention Programme – 6 Weeks Targeted support for students with ongoing concerns. The ENGAGE Programme – 6 Weeks For persistent behaviour and motivation issues. Includes: • PowerPoints • Workbooks • Reflection tasks • Tracking sheets • Staff guidance Rapid Identification Tools Academic & Welfare Review Quick triage tool for pastoral conversations. Internal Monitoring Report Simple progress tracking for intervention students. Why Schools Buy This Because behaviour systems fail when: • Staff don’t teach habits • Interventions aren’t structured • Tracking isn’t clear • Students aren’t taught the skills behind behaviour This bundle fixes that.
£12.99
Bundle
Ultimate Behaviour, SEMH & Pastoral Leadership Bundle
Ultimate Behaviour, SEMH & Pastoral Leadership Bundle For a walk through of the unit see MrSportandPE on YouTube Everything you need for whole-school behaviour, SEMH support, pastoral systems, and high-quality interventions — in one complete package. This comprehensive bundle brings together 16 of my best-selling behaviour, SEMH, CPD, pastoral and intervention resources, designed to save teachers hours of planning and give schools a fully joined-up system for behaviour, wellbeing, pastoral support and classroom management. Perfect for: Pastoral leads • Heads of Year • Behaviour Managers • SEMH leads • SENCOs • Classroom teachers • Tutors • Support staff • DSLs SOME OF - What’s Included • Behaviour Intervention Programme – 6 Weeks Structured behaviour change programme with lessons, worksheets, activities and tracking. • Core Behaviour Habits Daily routines, habits and scripts that transform behaviour culture. • Core Behaviour Skills Explicit teaching of emotional recognition, communication, respectful disagreement, resilience and more. • De-escalation & Crisis Management Staff training, scripts, strategies, worksheets and scenarios to prevent and calm crisis moments. • Difficult Conversations Toolkit Step-by-step guides, scripts, planning sheets and real examples for parents, students and staff discussions. • Identity & Self-Esteem SEMH Programme – 6 Weeks Weekly lessons, tasks, identity-webs, self-esteem development and reflection activities. • Parent Communication Templates Professional, time-saving templates for praise, concerns, incidents, behaviour updates and wellbeing. • Self-Esteem & Motivation Intervention Pack – 10 Sessions Fully structured sessions with worksheets, tasks and motivation-building tools. • SEMH Assessment & Intervention Mega Pack Student assessments, screening tools, intervention menus, scoring sheets and staff guidance. • SEMH Staff CPD – Practical Strategies Staff training with practical approaches for supporting SEMH students in class. • The ENGAGE Programme – 6-Week Behaviour, Motivation & Self-Regulation Full programme including PowerPoints, teacher notes, assessment and student tasks. • Whole-School Behaviour Management Mega Pack Complete behaviour system: policy, staff CPD, scripts, routines, student PowerPoints, worksheets and more. • Basic Academic & Welfare Review A simple review tool for tutors and pastoral staff. • AND MORE.... Why This Bundle Works ✔ Whole-school consistent language across habits, routines and expectations ✔ Evidence-informed SEMH strategies that staff can use immediately ✔ Ready-to-deliver lessons, CPD and interventions – no planning required ✔ Suitable for individual students, groups, classes and whole-school systems ✔ Perfect for behaviour leads looking to raise standards quickly and sustainably Who This Bundle Is For This complete package is ideal for any school looking to: Improve behaviour culture Build consistent routines and expectations Develop staff confidence in managing challenging behaviour Support students with SEMH needs Strengthen pastoral systems Provide impactful interventions and practical classroom strategies
£24.99
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