About Connect 2

Connect 2 emerged from the collaborative vision and experience of Jack Cudworth, who has managed various children's services mainly covering SEMH, and Dr Liz Gillett, a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, who specialises in working with vulnerable children and families.

Connect 2 has a vision in which children, who struggle with their emotional and behavioural regulation are able to make connections with psychologically informed and self-regulated adults to create an opportunity for long-term change. To achieve this Connect 2 focuses on four connecting building blocks: recognising and accepting the child, developing the reflective capacity of the adult, fostering attuned communication, and creating a psychologically safe environment; all essential components in facilitating timely and reparative support that creates opportunities for growth.

Finding and maintaining the balance of these building blocks challenges many services so Connect 2 has designed a framework that navigates the developmental journey of a young mind, from their survival brain to their thinking brain, providing insights into the impact of life experiences on fundamental skills. By recognising that the brain organises from the ‘bottom up’,

 Connect 2 offers solutions to services that support children with early adversity while holding the complexity of this in mind. Continuous individual and team development is prioritised, knowing that drawing on psychological expertise and ‘hands-on’ experience enables unique opportunities for powerful and trajectory-changing connections.