Proven to work: TeamUp supports children to heal through movement

Across the globe, millions of children are growing up in the midst of conflict. War and displacement leave lasting scars—especially on young minds. Yet mental health and psychosocial support for children in crisis settings remains severely underfunded and overlooked.

War Child’s response to this urgent need is grounded in a structured, scalable system of care—because every child has the right to grow up with hope, dignity, and a chance to heal.

At the heart of this system is TeamUp—a movement-based psychosocial support intervention that uses movement, play, and body awareness to help children process their emotions in safe and structured ways. And now, after rigorous research, TeamUp can be considered an evidence-based methodology.

Movement that makes a difference

TeamUp was developed by War Child, Save the Children, and UNICEF Netherlands to support children affected by war and displacement. Through structured play, dance, body-based exercises, and breathing techniques, the sessions offer children a safe space to express themselves, regulate emotions, and rebuild a sense of normalcy—all without the need for verbal language.

Trained facilitators deliver TeamUp sessions across a variety of settings—schools, child-friendly spaces or community centres and in various contexts such as the occupied Palestinian territories, Ukraine, Uganda, and Burundi, globally reaching between 100,000 to 150,000 children each year.

Backed by rigorous evidence

TeamUp has already reached children affected by war in more than 25 countries. But now, a major milestone confirms the effectiveness we’ve seen on the ground: TeamUp works. Rigorous research funded by Templeton World Charity Foundation (TWCF) and conducted in Uganda and Burundi, evaluated the programme's effectiveness in improving children’s emotional wellbeing in conflict-affected settings.

Both studies demonstrated that children receiving TeamUp reported:

• Improved emotional well-being
• Stronger social connection and friendships
• Enhanced emotional regulation
• More positive attitudes towards school

This formal recognition confirms that TeamUp meets global standards for evidence-based mental health and psychosocial support—paving the way for further scaling, partnerships, and institutional integration.

Partnerships that power the future

This achievement would not have been possible without the dedicated support of TWCF, whose belief in the value of rigorous science and innovation in humanitarian contexts made the research possible.

This recognition strengthens our mission: to ensure every child, no matter where they live or what they’ve endured, has access to the tools they need to heal, grow, and thrive. With new evidence in hand, we’re better equipped than ever to advocate for the inclusion of mental health and psychosocial support in education systems and humanitarian responses worldwide.

Watch the full documentary and Mark’s TED talk at the TWCF Annual Event to learn more about how War Child’s care system and TeamUp are helping children reclaim their right to learn, play, heal—and simply be children again.