Neuro-Dramatic-Play

Domain VIII · Creative & expressive arts therapies · Sue Jennings · 1998

What it is

NDP is an attachment-based way of using play and drama, developed by dramatherapist and play therapist Sue Jennings, who says she has worked on it since 1998 (the company name is a registered mark). It is not a manualised therapy with fixed sessions. It is a developmental framework plus a set of…

Format

• No source cited sets a fixed number of phases, sessions or criteria for moving between phases. Jennings stresses that the NDP play forms "start and interact with each other, rather than following a developmental pathway". The working sequence below is organised around her developmental models. The…
• Referral, consent and assessment (1–3 sessions, plus at least one parent or carer meeting). Do the safeguarding check and gather developmental history, including pregnancy, birth, early care, placements and losses. Observe the child's play against EPR and the NDP forms to find where play is…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Safety and ritual (early sessions): set up a safe space, a predictable opening and closing ritual, and rhythmic, calming play. Creative Play with Children at Risk opens on creating a safe space. Jennings links rhythmic play with "safety and security". Move on when the child can enter and leave the play space with regulated arousal and uses the ritual.
• Version followed: Sue Jennings' Neuro-Dramatic-Play (NDP) as set out in Healthy Attachments and Neuro-Dramatic-Play (JKP, 2010), her Embodiment-Projection-Role (EPR) chapter in Play Therapy Today (Routledge, 2014), Creative Play with Children at Risk (2nd ed., Routledge, 2017), and Neuro-Dramatic-Play Ltd training and newsletter material from 2024–2025. The books are cited from publisher descriptions, contents lists…
• What it is. NDP is an attachment-based way of using play and drama, developed by dramatherapist and play therapist Sue Jennings, who says she has worked on it since 1998 (the company name is a registered mark). It is not a manualised therapy with fixed sessions. It is a developmental framework plus a set of play forms, used by therapists, teachers, carers and parents. Jennings places the "NDP period" from about six…

Evidence status, as the guide reports it

• Status of neuroscience claims. The name and the books link NDP to brain development. In the sources cited, Jennings makes these points as general statements without citing specific studies. Examples: attachment shapes brain development; infants calm against a heartbeat and may match their heart…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• relaxed, voluntary staying. Any struggle means open it up immediately.
• sustained rhythm and eye contact without talk pressure. Use a soft ball and a clear space.
• dust (use washed play sand), and sand in eyes. Never interpret sand scenes as evidence of abuse.
• longer out-breaths and shared delight. Bubble solution should not be ingested, and floors get slippery.
• the child making themselves findable (a sign of trust). Panic while hidden means stop and reunite at once.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.