‘Why making maths accessible is so close to my heart’ by Carol Vorderman (Free offer)
Carol Vorderman was already a pioneer by being the first woman to appear on Channel 4 in Countdown. Her love of maths is still close to her heart—Carol also has …
Category: Guest Posts
The autistic girls are out there: Losing the gender bias in diagnosing autism
by Dr Felicity Sedgewick and Hannah McLinden, University of Bristol It has always been the case that the number of boys being diagnosed with autism far outnumbers the number of …
Making Supported Internships work so young people with learning disabilities and autism can thrive
with Julie Pointer, Programme Lead for Children and Young People, NDTi Earlier this year, the Government announced plans, as part of a multi-million-pound funding initiative, to improve supported internships. Supported …
Is NHS England breaking a promise to roll out eye care for disabled children in all special schools?
with Aylee Richmond, National Eye Care Information Officer, SeeAbility A few years ago I woke up with vision loss in one of my eyes. It was frightening, but I was …
Parent-blaming to avoid professional accountability is a human rights issue
with Katherine Uher, parent and psychotherapist and Benji Uher We’ve run a number of articles that feature the injustice of staff in local authorities and health services using parent-blaming as …
10 top tips for moving local authority with an EHCP
with Liz Arriens Troy, a parent of a child with Down Syndrome The 2014 SEND reforms were supposed to have made EHCPs more easy to move between local authorities when …
How will the government-funded RISE partnership improve local areas’ SEND provision?
with Anna Gardiner, Assistant Director – Health , Council for Disabled Children Earlier this year the Department for Education announced £12 million of funding to directly support schools and colleges to …
I’m a Dad with ASD and ADHD. Here’s why I’ll never give up fighting for my neurodiverse children’s educational rights
with an article from James Alexander, neurodivergent Dad of neurodiverse children **With Will Quince gone from SEND to Health, we will bring you a full update on the implications in …
What is “special educational provision” in law? How a case of electromagnetic hypersensitivity may help future appeals
Article by Ed Duff, HCB Solicitors A very interesting SEND appeal in the Upper Tribunal caught our eye recently. A family was appealing in a dispute over what could be …
An Employment Passport to young people with additional needs into paid work
with Richard Lamplough, My Employment Passport This autumn, thousands of parents will be waving off or delivering their young people to universities up and down the land (or even overseas). …
What influences the emotional wellbeing of young people with severe dyslexic difficulties?
with Claire Durrant, Researcher, University of Sussex When our child(ren) have a SEND diagnosis, they can be made to feel stupid, isolated, rejected by thoughtless peers and often, shockingly, by …
How The Wave Project makes surfing possible for disabled children
With Ian Bennett, The Wave Project A decade ago, I wrote here about a young Cornwall charity that was helping vulnerable young people find their feet—and get them wet—learning to …
Helping Businesses Become More Inclusive with SEND Session Guides
with Dan Hughes I don’t think that there are many people reading this that would argue that inclusivity isn’t beneficial to everyone, but sometimes being exclusive is the best way …
Falling Through the Cracks: How children with SEND struggle to access early years education
with Catherine McLeod, Dingley’s Promise Today we’re hearing from Catherine McLeod from Dingley’s Promise, a charity trying to drive change for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in …
The #SENDReview must embed Speech, Language and Communication skills across education, especially teacher training
with Amy Loxley, Lead Speech and Language Advisor for I CAN, One of the major criticisms of the SEND Review is its silence about the revolution in SEND teacher training …
Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII) and Perplexing Presentations – New guidance for social work practitioners
with Sally Russell, Trustee, The PDA Society Scientific rigour in medicine is, thankfully, the rule rather than the exception. We want our medicines, procedures, and treatments to be based on …
Campaigning for inclusive education for children with Down’s syndrome
with Chris Barnes, Down’s Syndrome International Diversity and inclusion. Two words we champion daily, the holy grail for those in the disability community. But what do they mean? And how …
What the evidence says about the 13 crucial areas for quality in Alternative Provision
with Dennis Simms, IntegratED Hub Lead The SEND Review Green Paper places great emphasis on including alternative provision within a “single system” with mainstream and special schools. The DfE want …
#SENDReview: Downgrading SENCO training is a mistake but protected time must be mandatory
with Tristan Middleton, University of Gloucestershire & chair, LLSCIC. Under the SEND Code of Practice, SENCOs must be gain a Masters-level NASENCO award within three years of taking the role. …
#SENDReview: Why mandatory mediation in SEND appeals isn’t wanted–or needed
with Margaret Doyle, author, accredited SEND mediator One of the proposals in the SEND Review Green Paper is for compulsory mediation before parents can register an appeal at the SEND …