EP for Schools

What should school understand about interoception?

Understanding interoception helps staff distinguish the pupil’s access needs from assumptions about motivation or ability. Ask the pupil how they communicate hunger, thirst, discomfort or a need for the toilet, accepting that describing a feeling may be difficult.

By Dr Ian Corban · Educational psychologist · Last reviewed 2 October 2026

Make body-related routines accessible without testing tolerance

Keep agreed access to drinks, toilets and rest clear, and use discreet routine reminders where helpful. Do not make accurate naming of a body sensation a condition of receiving support.

Compare observations with the family and follow any care plan or professional advice. School routines can support access without claiming to assess or treat interoception. Supporting body awareness considers practical participation where noticing position, movement or space is also difficult.

Start with the pupil's experience

Talk with the pupil in a way they can access and ask what makes school easier, harder or more tiring. Gather the family’s knowledge and compare this with classroom observation, work samples, attendance or participation patterns and the pupil’s response to previous support. For interoception, the same outward behaviour can have very different causes, so a description of the difficulty is more useful than an assumption about motive.

Keep expectations ambitious and realistic

Try this: Choose one recurring situation connected with interoception. Write down what happens before it, what the pupil appears to find difficult, the adjustment adults will make and one observable sign that access has improved.

Questions for the SENCo

Further reading

Use these sources alongside current statutory guidance, professional advice and the individual pupil’s circumstances.

More practical advice: Browse the advice.

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