SELFi:
Supporting Emotional Literacy through Football intervention
SELFi is a psychoeducational programme that uses football concepts and activities to promote engagement and understanding, while developing emotional literacy and self-regulation.
SELFi: Ten sessions with specific emotional literacy messages
SELFi consists of 10 structured sessions, each thoughtfully designed to explore a specific emotional literacy theme.
The structure ensures that each message builds on the last, creating a coherent, layered intervention that feels accessible and meaningful for young people.
By the end of the ten sessions, students have a toolkit that spans emotional literacy, cognitive‑behavioural strategies, physiological regulation, problem‑solving, and social support.
SELFi is a multi-component intervention grounded in a biopsychosocial framework. Below is a summary of its central components:
Each session has a similar structure. This rhythm becomes familiar, and that familiarity supports engagement, regulation, and learning. When students know what’s coming, they can focus more fully on the content rather than the process.
SELFi resources - ensuring you have the right tools and space to deliver the intervention.
Within the SELFi manual, there are detailed session plans with scripts.
Preparing the ground properly means the seeds of the intervention have space to grow — and it’s one of the strongest predictors of successful delivery. As such, the manual contains planning sheets for each session, so facilitators can secure locations, resources, and equipment ahead of time. This reduces stress, increases fidelity, and ensures sessions run smoothly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the rationale for this intervention?
SELFi was developed to support young people who experience difficulties with emotional and behavioural regulation and who engage more readily through physical or sport-related activities. Developing emotional literacy and an understanding of cognitive-behavioural principles was identified as important, but these concepts needed to be presented in an accessible and motivating way. SELFiTM therefore combines discussion, practical activities, grounding and breathing exercises, alongside football-based activities to make psychological concepts easier to understand and apply. These approaches help students develop greater emotional awareness, self-understanding and self-regulation.
Who is the intervention aimed at?
SELFi is an early psycho-educational intervention designed to develop emotional literacy and self-regulation, using football as a vehicle for engagement. It is not intended to address deep-seated or long-term emotional difficulties, nor is it a substitute for individualised therapeutic support. SELFi is primarily intended for young people in upper Key Stage 2 (UK Years 5 and 6) and Key Stage 3 (UK Years 7 to 9). Because some session discussions and activities require a level of abstract/conceptual understanding and personal reflection, the current version is not considered suitable for children in Key Stage 1 without adaptation. SELFi is designed for small groups of up to six participants. The group size may be increased where additional adults are available to provide appropriate support. As sport-related activities are integrated throughout the sessions, the intervention may be particularly engaging for young people who prefer an active approach to learning. A referral form is included in this manual to help practitioners determine whether SELFi is appropriate for the student being considered.
Who can deliver the intervention?
SELFi should be delivered by an adult facilitator with an understanding of relevant psycho-educational concepts, including emotional literacy, emotional and behavioural self-regulation, and cognitive-behavioural principles. SELFi Facilitator Training introduces the psycho-educational principles that underpin the intervention sessions. Facilitators must complete this training before delivering the intervention. Trials have indicated that co-delivery by two adult facilitators can benefit participants and support effective delivery. This may involve, for example, a school-based professional, such as a teaching assistant or pastoral support worker, working alongside an educational psychologist, trainee educational psychologist or specialist teacher. As physical activities are incorporated throughout the intervention, facilitators should be able to demonstrate the activities and support participants to take part safely. Experience in sport or coaching would be beneficial but is not essential.
What does the training involve?
The one-day SELFi Facilitator training provides an understanding of the psychoeducational principles underlying the sessions in this intervention. Facilitators should not undertake delivering this intervention if they have not had the necessary SELFi training. A Facilitator manual, alongside relevant slides and resources for delivering the intervention are shared as part of the training. Supervision is also offered to groups of Facilitators at two time points during the intervention delivery.
What does the intervention cover?
SELFi (version 3.2) comprises 10 sessions, each lasting approximately 60 minutes. It is designed to be delivered weekly or, where appropriate, twice weekly. Additional time should be allocated before Session 1 and after Session 10 to complete the pre- and post-assessment activities. The following provisions are recommended to reinforce key messages, support the effectiveness of the intervention and encourage students to apply their learning beyond the sessions: Student workbook: contains the concepts and activities from each session and reinforces the key take-home messages. Skill development: facilitators encourage ongoing reflection, review learning from previous sessions, and remind students what to practise or notice between sessions. Shared learning: summaries of key concepts are shared with school professionals and parents/carers so that learning can be reinforced at school and at home. Follow-up session: where possible, a follow-up session should be arranged several weeks or months after the intervention, depending on facilitator and student availability.
How is the intervention delivered?
SELFi is delivered as part of a small group intervention (up to 6 participants), although this group size can be amended if additional facilitators are involved. As there is integration of sports related activities throughout the sessions, the intervention could be considered more motivating for those who prefer an active approach to intervention and are interested in football and/or sports.
Where can the intervention be run?
The intervention requires access to a quiet room for the knowledge-sharing, discussion and practical elements of each session. Visual resources are used throughout, so the room must have a whiteboard or screen on which presentation slides and videos can be displayed. As every session includes physical activities, access to a gym or suitable outdoor space and appropriate equipment is also required. The resources needed for each session are listed in the Session Planning sheet and individual session outline in this manual.
How often is the intervention run?
There are 10 sessions intended to be delivered on a weekly or twice weekly basis. The sessions take approximately 60 minutes each. A pre- and post- assessment session would need to be built into the intervention time scale (just before the start and very shortly after completion).
How is the intervention assessed?
SELFi aims to develop students’ awareness of emotions, thoughts and behaviours, and provide tools for regulation so that they can manage these and achieve their goals. Pre-assessment establishes a baseline of how students understand, express and manage emotions and behaviours, helping facilitators tailor activities to their needs and readiness. Post-assessment identifies possible changes in emotional literacy and regulation skills. It can also indicate which strategies were helpful and where further support may be needed. Evaluation should draw on other relevant school information, such as wellbeing and behaviour records, attendance data and wider monitoring systems. Findings may also inform provision planning, SEN reviews, EHCP updates and provide evidence for the Assess–Plan–Do–Review cycle (when monitoring the provision and inclusion of individual students and/or vulnerable groups). Before Session 1, the pre-assessment questionnaires should be completed by the student, a parent or carer, and a teacher or other school professional who knows the student well. The same respondents should complete the post-assessment questionnaires after Session 10, preferably on the same day and no later than one week after the final session. Comparing pre- and post-assessment information from students, parents or carers, and school professionals provides a more complete picture of change across settings. This triangulation reduces reliance on a single perspective and supports a fuller understanding of the student’s context. Two evaluation measures are recommended: •The SELFi Rating Scale (Collingwood, 2022; Revised 2026) assesses perceived changes in specific emotional-literacy and regulation skills addressed by the intervention. Versions for students, parents/carers and school professionals are included in this manual. •The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; Goodman et al., 1998) is a widely used measure for monitoring emotional and behavioural outcomes. NB: Facilitators or other trusted adults should help students access the questionnaires if they have learning needs, such as reading, literacy, language or processing-speed difficulties. For example, a facilitator may read the questions aloud to the student. Parents or carers may also need support to complete the questionnaires if English is not their first language. Finally, to monitor accessibility and student engagement, facilitators are encouraged to record feedback on session outcomes, delivery and fidelity, as well as any significant observations of participating students. The relevant sheets are included in this manual.
What is the cost?
SELFi Training: Cost below is per participant (including access to manual and resources to support the delivery of the intervention. Full day: £150 * There is a minimum of 10 people required for the training session. SELFi Supervision: Group Supervision delivered by qualified Educational Psychologist. Supervision is undertaken remotely within the duration of the intervention. It is recommended to undertake at least 2 supervision sessions during the intervention. The purpose of the supervision is to support facilitators with any concerns related to delivery, and/or participants, as well as supporting facilitators with aspects of their own wellbeing. £80 for up to an hour group supervision (maximum of 6 per group)
Find out how SELFi could work in your setting
Copyright and restrictions
Please note:
- SELFi is owned by FlourishMind.
- Those trained in this intervention will be granted a non-exclusive limited-use licence of this Intellectual Property.
- Title, copyright, intellectual property rights and distribution rights of the Intellectual Property remain exclusively with FlourishMind.
- Only those who have attended the SELFi training delivered by FlourishMind will be licensed to deliver the intervention.
- Delivery of the intervention will include undertaking pre- and post- assessment with all those taking part in the intervention. This anonymised data will be shared with the FlourishMind to contribute to the intervention evidence base.
- The resources linked to SELFi cannot be shared with others who have not undertaken the SELFi training.
- Those who have undertaken the SELFi training will not be licenced to deliver the intervention beyond the agreed schools in the local authority or community settings who have paid for the training, without the permission of FlourishMind.