Whilst doing my teaching practice in Tavistock, Liverpool and then as a fully qualified primary school teacher in Newham, London it became clear that many children were preoccupied with matters related to survival as opposed to the national curriculum, despite my engaging lessons! What did they need? Working in Bolivia with street children for a year strengthened my curiosity as again I came up close and personal with hurting children preoccupied with matters of survival. What would interrupt this cycle?

On my return to England, I was determined to learn. I began my search studying what it takes to make us human and why we do what we do through therapy trainings. Attachment was the foundational platform to this discovery. My curiosity deepened as I started applying a new lens to my work as a teacher. In a large mainstream secondary school in Lewisham, London where I started to specialise in coming alongside those with relational vulnerabilities.

I went on to set up TouchBase in 2015 – an organisation supporting both the hurting child and adult and all those around them move towards recovery. Recovery from all that might have caused disruption to what could have happened first time around. To reflect my own professional experiences I wanted to ensure that the organisation covered therapy, education support, community projects and trainings.

Touchbase grew from just myself and one other working around my kitchen table to a vibrant, dynamic team! We had integrative therapists and specialist teachers on board who were all trained in specialist ways of working in trauma recovery. All of the team were very experienced in both therapy and educational contexts just like me! Working locally within Sussex, nationally and internationally we knew that intentional, rich, rewarding relationships could provide the lifeline needed by those wounded in relationship.

We reorganised ourselves in response to the therapy funding gap in April 2025 related to the ASGSF delays and later cuts to therapy. We were determined to continue on in the work we were so passionate about.

Allado means alongside in Spanish. We cannot afford to do life alone especially when life gets tough. We need one another. We need fellow travellers, whether we are children, young people or adults, in order to function well in our bodies, hearts and minds. We function best in relationship.

Here at Allado we continue to specialise in this work by providing education support and trainings in the area of trauma recovery, particularly in the education context. We are passionate about equipping educators to provide trauma responsive education for those children and young people who have experienced adversity.

We are the collective of specialist practitioners who worked for TouchBase CiC between 2015 and 2025. We are skilled up in education support and in presenting foundational, intermediate and advanced trainings. All our trainers are also practitioners so our work includes many of our lived experiences, as well as integrating the latest in modern attachment theory, child development and neuroscience. We are influenced by the work of Dr Dan Hughes, Dr Stephen Porges, Dr Gabor Mate and Dr Bruce Perry, in particular.

Louise Michelle Bombèr – Creator of Allado – April 2025.