Charlie’s farm project to create accessible holidays in Devon
Our columnist Charlie Mead has been quiet of late. I sometimes see Facebook posts of him at various locations around the world, enjoying himself, often on golf courses. You would …
Category: Columnists
How the respite of a Short Break can keep a family together
Parents often talk to me about the unavailability and inaccessibility of respite. They are concerned that there is nothing available to them or their children or that they are not …
Not warriors, but hopemongers
Warrior Mum ♦Parent Activist ♦ Campaigner These are phrases frequently applied to SEN parents, you might even label yourself this way. I’ve had the titles attached to me over the years, by bloggers, …
Nine principles for supporting children’s comprehension
“It’s a strange world of language in which skating on thin ice can get you into hot water” – Franklin P Jones. The English language is complicated. There is a …
How Jonah’s parents are connecting families with his rare disease -and how you can too
As an online manager of international patient communities for many different rare diseases, I receive emails every day from parents and affected people looking for help and information about their …
Seclusion Rooms: What Every Parent and Professional Should Know
Sharon Paley is based in the UK at the British Institute of Learning Disability (BILD). She is currently undertaking a professional study tour of Australia and has received a Florence Nightingale …
Staying sane in special needs parenting: Finding 15 minutes a day to be “just me”
When your family includes a member with special needs or disabilities, there is so little time for you, the parent carer. Almost none. Of course, parenting all young children can …
Should Awareness Days Try Harder?
Awareness day fatigue is a 21st century issue that has turned the the definition of supporting a cause into a quick click of a like button. Have charities and organisations …
The Positive Power of Assessment – finding the right route
What is it that is so interesting about children? It seems a simple question. Parents know their own children well – or so they think. Then the child does something …
A mother’s top tips for parenting your ADHD child
I recently read an article written by professionals concerning Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The article focused on diagnosis and treatment and it was apparent from the article that it …
When and how to access speech and language therapy
When you are concerned about your child’s development, it can be worrying and difficult to know where to go for support. I often have conversations with people who are unsure …
Why doctors MUST listen to patients and parent carers
You might have noticed that, here at SNJ’s virtual HQ, we have a missing columnist. Renata Blower is a mother of three, one of whom, Dominic, has an undiagnosed rare …
Rare Disease Day 2014: the largest awareness campaign ever, what’s next?
I’ve been involved in the recognition and celebration of Rare Disease Day, which is today, for the past five years. The main objective of the day is to raise awareness …
Top tips for preparing for medical appointments
Elizabeth writes… It can be daunting going to any appointment. I see myself as relatively level-headed and as a speech therapist, have lots of experience talking to different professionals. However, …
The child inside: Do we need to label disability?
As this Valentine’s Day approached, I began thinking about how much we all love all our children equally. How we wouldn’t change a single hair on the heads of those …
My son has autism! Is anyone listening?
Hello…can you hear me? Are you listening? I mean really listening? How often do we really listen to each other? I don’t mean just hearing someone speak and then waiting …
The parents working to find a cure for deadly Sanfilippo syndrome
Jonah was born in 2008 to excited parents in New York City. But at his first year check up, his pediatrician noticed his head circumference was large for his age. …
The Disability Abortion Lie – when choice seems like no choice
It’s easy to assume that the moral dilemma of whether to abort your unborn baby that you’ve learned has a disability, is confined to a shouty debate between pro-choicers on …
How to communicate successfully with children with unclear speech
Both Helen and I specialise in working with children with phonological or speech sound production difficulties. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), 8-9% of …
Celebrate the small smile when working with vulnerable children
In his daily work our columnist, Child Psychologist Charlie Mead, counsels children who find themselves in Care or “Looked-After”. He is passionate about ensuring these already disadvantaged youngsters are not forgotten …