Author: Amy Skipp

Amy Skipp is Director of ASK Research, a social research organisation specialising in understanding factors that affect children, young people and families’ outcomes. She has previously been Research Director in the Children and Families team at NatCen social research, Head of Research for Gingerbread, the national organisation for single parent families, and Head of Research at the National Deaf Children’s Society. Amy has over 20 years experience of special educational needs, starting from her studies into specific language impairment and then into roles in the fields of Deafness, Early Support and Working in partnership with families. Recent projects Amy has led have included mapping the EHC process and finding out what practice best supports families, exploring effective SEN support and assessing pathways to employment for young people with SEND. www.ehcpjourneys.com @EHCPlans

ADD_ADHD, Columnists, special needs

ADHD meds shortages impact pupil learning. These charities are offering schools inclusive strategies to help

By Amy Skipp April 12, 2024 October 1, 2024

With Vicci Wells is Head of Sport at the Youth Sport Trust (YST), For the last three years, we at ASK Research Partners have been working with the Youth Sport …

Columnists, SEND & Health Research, SEND Politics, special needs

Research: Cost of Living Crisis having “profound and far-reaching consequences”, increasing SEND needs while forcing cuts to school support budgets

By Amy Skipp September 29, 2023 September 28, 2023

Amy Skipp, ASK Resesarch, and Jenna Julius, NFER Over the last few weeks, NFER and ASK Research have published a three-part research series, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, investigating the …

Columnists, Coronavirus, specialist settings

Pupils in special settings suffered significant effects of the pandemic but the “Recovery Plan” won’t help them

By Amy Skipp July 14, 2021 July 13, 2021

Throughout the pandemic, we have been monitoring what has been happening with special schools and colleges and the pupils who attend them. Our previous research, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, …

Columnists, Coronavirus, SEND & Health Research, special needs, Teaching

SEND researchers identify key lessons for teaching children with special education needs in lockdown

By Amy Skipp February 4, 2021 April 20, 2022

We’ve just launched our new report (PDF link) with Nuffield (Amy Skipp, Vicky Hopwood & Rob Webster With Jenna Julius & Dawson McLean, NFER February 2021), on special education during …

special needs

Special school heads think 14% of their children won’t be back

By Amy Skipp September 3, 2020 September 2, 2020

Amy Skipp is a researcher, founder of ASK Research, and the creator of the EHCP Journeys website. She’s writing today about the research she’s leading on for the Nuffield Foundation. …

Columnists, SEND & Health Research, special needs, Teaching

DfE Research: Mainstream Teaching Assistant cuts negatively impacting SEND pupils

By Amy Skipp July 2, 2019 December 15, 2025

Amy Skipp with Rob Webster, Associate Professor in the Centre for Inclusive Education, UCL Institute of Education At the start of this academic year ASK Research were commissioned by DfE …

Guest Posts, SEN Support, SENCo, special needs

SEN Support in schools: Finding out what works in practice

By Amy Skipp March 14, 2018 August 20, 2020

Tania’s note: We concentrate a lot on EHCPs on this blog, but far more children are on lower levels of SEN help in schools, now called SEN Support. But how …