Schools’ Programme

Empowering Educators. Supporting Students. Creating Resilient School Communities.

Creating a safe, nurturing environment for mental and emotional resilience.

Since the pandemic, children and educators have faced overwhelming challenges: disrupted routines, social isolation, increased anxiety, and emotional trauma.

For many, particularly children and those working within education, the impact has been profound.

Research shows a direct link between teacher wellbeing and student success.

Why Yoga?

Special Yoga offers therapeutic practices that support re-connection, emotional regulation, anxiety reduction, and healthy relationships—preparing both children and educators for meaningful, effective learning.

At Special Yoga, we believe that self care isn’t optional—it’s essential. You deserve to feel well, supported, and empowered to lead with compassion and confidence. Then the children thrive too.

Special Yoga supports Key Educational Outcomes and Frameworks:

✅ Ofsted Framework - We support indicators in Personal Development and Behaviour & Attitudes, including resilience, mental health, and emotional regulation.

✅ Healthy Schools Award - Our practices qualify as evidence for the Mental Health & Wellbeing strand.

✅ Wellbeing Award for Schools - Our weekly sessions and strategies support long-term culture change, aligned with the Award’s core goals.

We offer a range of packages to suit every school:

Download our brochure for more details and pricing.

Email schools@specialyoga.co.uk to discuss Bespoke Packages. We’ll make it work for you.

Course Content

  • Develop self care practices to nourish and restore, to show up as the best we can be for others. ‘In the moment’ practices for students and staff.

  • Understand why how we breathe matters and how our breath impacts the children. Breathwork for emotional and mental health resilience. Learn practices for alertness as well as calm and regulation to create an optimum state for learning.

  • Tools for classroom breaks with movement and breath. How movement can help concentration. Adapted movements to accommodate different physical challenges. Sitting and mat based sessions for classrooms.

  • Mindful practices to support challenging moments during the day. Practices that offer emotional and mental health resilience for staff and children, with self-awareness, emotional intelligence and self-regulation.

  • Tools to support the child to regulate and find emotional and mental balance, and create the optimum state for concentration and learning. Different massage techniques that children can give to themselves.

What others think …

  • "The flipping the lid exercise has made a dramatic difference in one particular class with children with challenging behaviours. Other teachers are surprised and are interested in training to bring tools to their classrooms."

    Teacher

  • "The approach and core philosophy espoused integrates so well with our ethos and practice for managing stress, conflict and challenge and so it will embed into and enhance our practice. I will recommend the programme to other Special Heads."

    Head Teacher

  • “A highlight of this course has been realising how my own personal practice has changed my classroom environment."

    Teacher

Meet our Schools’ Programme Team Leaders

  • Jyoti Manuel

    FOUNDER

    With her depth of knowledge and many years of experience, Jyoti Jo Manuel is recognised by many as one of the worlds leading authorities on therapeutic yoga for children.

    Her personal yoga journey started in 1974 and she began teaching in 1989. In 2002 Jyoti founded Special Yoga, a global organisation established to provide and develop sustainable and accessible yoga programmes for children with special and additional needs. 

    Special Yoga’s work reaches across education, therapeutic settings and within the home. Jyoti has travelled extensively implementing Special Yoga programmes in orphanages, social care, education and health care and for paediatric therapists and psychologists.

    As founder, lead and spiritual head of Special Yoga she has trained senior practitioners to support the effective and impactful delivery of Special Yoga into local councils, academies and individual special schools and specialist provisions to provide training in therapeutic yoga for children with special needs.

  • Karen Rodrigues Ayers

    ADVANCED PRACTITIONER & TRAINER

    I have over 30 years of experience in the field of education, with a strong foundation in Special Needs and Early Years provision. My career has encompassed a range of settings, including Montessori education, mainstream primary schools, and specialist settings, all underpinned by a degree in Special Educational Needs and Inclusive Practice, as well as certification in Play Therapy & Portage.

    Alongside my work with Special Yoga, I have delivered Portage services for nearly two decades – a home-visiting educational service for young children with additional needs. For 10 of those years, I led the Portage Early Years team, providing support to children and educational settings during key transitions, as well as supporting two schools as a Governor involved with Ofsted inspections as the Governor for SEN/D. In addition, I have also worked closely with families in all settings, delivering specialist interventions such as sleep counselling, play skills, and the National Autistic Society’s EarlyBird programme.

  • Laura Tilley

    ADVANCED PRACTITIONER & TRAINER

    Laura is a caring, intuitive and creative individual and teaches yoga to children and adults with SEND in nurseries, schools, day centres and private 1-2-1 work.  

    Her background is in dance and movement therapy and yoga for over 10 years. She has an in depth knowledge of Special Yoga having studied with us for many years and having taken foundation and senior practitioner courses. She now supports our work as a study group leader and teacher. 

    Laura has two very special daughters, one with complex learning disabilities and another with ADHD and Autism. This experience has shaped her journey towards yoga and self care for the children. She is also keenly aware of the importance of practise and self care for parents/carers and enjoys sharing ways in which this has supported her.

Special Yoga Graduates at: