Mobile Mental Health Therapy for Kids
The Children’s Place on Wheels a traveling mental health therapy playroom in a new minibus expertly retrofitted for this purpose. Eliminating the barrier of transportation, The Children’s Place on Wheels brings mental health services directly to young children at schools, early education centers and more.
Mental Health Therapy Comes to You!
The Children’s Place on Wheels works with host sites that are schools, early education centers and more.
The Children’s Place on Wheels parks outside each host site, and a designated adult walks each child from their classroom to the bus for their weekly therapy session. The bus is stationary and does not leave the site during the session and remains climate-controlled.
The therapy appointments will take place entirely while your child is at school, and your child’s therapist will remain in frequent communication with you to discuss your child’s progress on their treatment goals.
What Is Play Therapy?
Play is our first language, and toys are our words. Play therapy brings these ideas together to give young children the chance to tell their stories and heal from their pasts. Play therapists are highly-trained mental health professionals who are skilled in the language of play and believe everyone has the capacity for connection and healing. The therapist and child create a safe world to explore and grow.
Play therapy is an evidence-based practice and helpful in nearly every circumstance, including:
- Loss and grief
- Self-esteem
- Behaviors like biting, hitting, etc. or struggles with impulse control
- Externalized behaviors (aggression, impulse control)
- Attachment and ability to form relationships with peers and safe grownups
- Medical conditions
- Trauma
- Depression
- Anxiety
A State-of-the-Art Therapy Space
The Children’s Place on Wheels was the first of its kind in the Kansas City area. Beyond the reworking of the interior, the bus has other features, including a solar-powered heater and air conditioner to control temperature while parked, heated floors, and voice-activated lighting to create a comfortable therapeutic environment.
Staffed with a registered play therapist and a driver, the bus parks outside a center to meet with children for appointment-based therapy sessions. These clients are referred through The Children’s Place and begin their journeys with an initial developmental assessment along with a meeting between the caregiver and therapist. From there, the child has weekly appointments on the bus, with both the therapist and bus driver on the vehicle during sessions to ensure safety for all. Interns or fellows who are pursuing careers in the mental health field will also join at times to learn from our experienced therapists and develop an understanding of community-based mental health.
Learn More
Learn more about The Children’s Place on Wheels and opportunities to collaborate with local schools or community organizations by filling out the form below:
Frequently Asked Questions
Children must be between the ages of two and eight and have experienced at least one traumatic event. Children must regularly attend a current host site of The Children’s Place on Wheels.
Currently, therapy services on The Children’s Place on Wheels are fully funded by the Children’s Services Fund of Jackson County and there is no cost to families. If there are any changes to this funding, caregivers and host sites will be promptly informed.
Our bus parks outside the school, and school staff bring children out one at a time for scheduled therapy sessions. A clinically licensed therapist meets with the child, and our Driving & Safety Coordinator also stays on board to ensure the safety of all. At the end of the session, children are walked back inside the school and checked back into their classroom.
While the therapy sessions through The Children’s Place on Wheels take place while children are at school, therapists stay in frequent communication with each child’s caregiver to discuss the child’s progress on their treatment goals.
Fill out the online form above or call The Children’s Place at 816.363.1898 to speak with our Admissions Coordinator.
Thank You Donors & Vendors!
The Children’s Place on Wheels is possible thanks to generous support from CAPTRUST, Fore The Kids Foundation, the Philoptochos Society, the Eleanor Shutz Memorial Fund and an anonymous donor. We’re grateful for the Children’s Services Fund of Jackson County for underwriting the expense of therapy and ensuring there is no cost for families.
Thank you to the following talented vendors who helped bring our vision to life: Master’s Transportation, Stay In Your Lane, Tire One Wraps & Apparel, and Brookside Toy & Science.
