2016

Dear Santa Please bring us some very special gifts this year. We'd like every child with SEN or disabilities to be…

It's always a tricky one, especially if your son or daughter has made good progress with literacy during the preceding…

Six months ago, Ofsted & the Care Quality Commission began inspecting how well local areas are implementing the September 2014…

I always like to try and talk to my son about what he has done at school that day. His…

Nicky's back with two book reviews...   Book Review of Caged in Chaos by Victoria Biggs   This book was…

Illuminating great practice for children and young people with SEND is something we love to do at SNJ. Last year…

So the chickens have come home to roost, hopefully. The SEND Ofsted/CQC Inspectors have given Surrey a right kicking, and…

Life for any child with dyslexia can be challenging, especially at school. If they are lucky, they end up in…

In October 2016, I attended the Cambridge Rare Disease Network Summit 2016 with Tania. It was very thought-provoking and listening…

My boys are both at the age where they are discovering many aspects of adult life, including alcohol. They now go…

I have to admit that for a while, R and I joined the ranks of Smug Parents.  We didn’t mean…

Just a quick post today to let you know about a new format for our very popular SEND system flow charts.…

In my last blogpost, I shared my intention to show footage of other pupils from Bright Futures School.  In light…

A shocker of a report was published yesterday into the progress on the funding boost to mental health services for…

The Anti Bullying Alliances’ theme this year for anti-bullying week is 'Power for Good'.  What I understand this to mean…

Working Documents (WD) and draft EHC plans are quite similar, although with a draft plan you can negotiate on all…

When I was at the Cambridge Rare Disease Network Summit the other week, I saw a very interesting presentation that…

I don’t need to tell regular readers of this blog that dealing with the symptoms of the condition that affects…

Lee Scott is a very nice man. Earlier this year, at the request of the then Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan,…

Note: The book giveaway is now finished (Nov 2016)  It's a while since we brought you a giveaway, so today here's…

Just over two weeks ago I witnessed an online surge, the likes of which I have rarely seen before. Started…

I spent yesterday in Cambridge at the Cambridge Rare Disease Network Summit 2016. CDRN is run by the amazing Kay Parkinson, who…

The final report of The Rochford Review of statutory assessment arrangements for pupils working below the standard of national curriculum tests…

I'm always on the look out for best practice examples to bring to you on SNJ, whether you are a…

Depressingly, I'm hearing just as many, if not more, cases of families being forced to go to the First Tier…

When there are few specialists and no medical pathways to help your child's condition, you can feel like a pinprick in the priority…

Tania's note: Matt Keer, the parent of children who are deaf, is a whizz at figures. He's written for us…

Back in 2012, SNJ ran a parent story from a mum, Debs, who had been having lots of difficulty finding…

New figures out from the Ministry of Justice have shown a big jump in the number of appeals registered at the…

Those of you on Facebook or Twitter may have spotted a few of these pictures but for those of you…

One of the things that can cause big conflicts in a relationship, particularly where there is a child with special…

Elizabeth and I were recently contacted by Jessica Kingsley publishers, asking us to review a new book.  When I saw…

In the most devastating, impossible-to-imagine grief of the death of loved ones – especially your children - it would not be…

Teaching children with autism is one of the biggest worries faced by many teachers and even Special Needs Coordinators (SENCos)…

I've written on SNJ before about how the online community I help to manage, RareConnect, works to bring together families facing…

As you know, we’ve been following the development of the SEND inspections developed jointly by Ofsted and CQC. Barney has…

I was recently asked to write a SEND travel article for the Telegraph. After I had picked myself up from the…

When is a child with special educational needs, just not special enough? It's when the local authority decides the child's…

I’ve been sent a few books lately about diagnosing Autism / Asperger’s in girls and women. If you’re a regular…

The SEND reforms are failing to meet the needs of autistic children, according to a new report from the National…

Many of us know what it's like to be questioned intrusively by complete strangers because of our child's disability - whether…

A shout-out for a an event for rare disease patient groups and for professionals interested in the field. Findacure Midlands Networking…

How many of us have stayed home rather than face the potential ordeal of your autistic child having a melt-down…

It’s that time again when students anxiously await their exam results. We all hope for good passes all round, but…

A specialist speech and language teacher in Lincolnshire has launched a petition calling on the government to include Speech, Language and Communication…

We've run a couple of posts on SNJ from Lorraine Senior about Reflexology for children with special needs. They were really appreciated…

I wrote recently about how Son1 made a silver lining out of the clouds created by the grades in his  disappointing…

Tania's note: Jo Grace is back to tell us about something you may like to get involved with! Parallel London…

The children's communication charity, ICAN and the Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists have announced a review of John…

Beth McCleverty is the columnist today from Genetic Alliance UK Data, from many angles, has been somewhere near the top…

From today many parents of children with special educational and young people who have Education, Health and Care Plans will…

Last summer I sat down at my kitchen table and I wrote a book. Well, it wasn’t quite like that,…

At the end of summer last year, the AS results day to be precise, we were in a bit of…

When development is typical, infants at around six-seven months begin to show signs of an insatiable drive to grow…to stretch, learn and…

If you are concerned about any aspect of your child’s development, it can be difficult to know where to turn…

Some good news to report, at last: Earlier this year, we told you about The Carter Review of Initial Teacher…

Not so long ago, I wrote a post about apprenticeships for young people with learning disabilities and how Education, Health…

I decided to write about this as a result of an article I posted on SNJ's social media a while…

Our son has a severe physical disability and a longstanding diagnosis. He had a statutory Statement of Special Educational Needs…

Earlier this year, we hosted a post about ‘One page profiles and EHC plans the Wiki way’.  It's been very popular…

For four weeks from late April to early May I conducted a research survey into how things were going with…

A quick post today with an opportunity for parents interested in the Preparing for Adulthood agenda for young people with…

I was going to start this piece with "As the dust settles after the #Brexit vote...",  but every day the…

Last week, a group of eight parents, including me and Renata, went along to the Department of Education in London…

The BS Tweets story did rather set the SEND world alight with many posts from blogs and articles in the…

Moving the Baker Small Twitter-storm along... Special Needs Jungle would like to use the momentum we have gathered to create…

If you were browsing Twitter at the weekend, you may have happened upon a series of most startling and revealing…

Believe me I know about a lack of sleep! Neither of our children slept well for years. Anxious parenting, light…

I’ve noticed there is a lot of information on social media about Pathological Demand Avoidance, now recognised as part of…

In just over a week's time, I'm taking a group of parents to the Department for Education to meet former…

If you switched on BBC2 this morning (June 2nd 2016), you would have found me, Renata and some of our…

Last week I attended the European Conference on Rare Disease being held in Edinburgh*. It was three days of listening to…

Yesterday’s new SEND statistics reported worrying progress on SEND reform up to January 2016, amid soothing words from the Ministers…

As parent carers we often measure our successes in the little victories we achieve on a day to day basis.…

Tania writes: A few years ago, I ran a guest post from Jo Grace who was crowdfunding to raise funds…

One of the changes within the SEND reforms is that the support in the statutory Education, Health, and Care Plan…

The Department for Education recently published some "user experience" research into the SEND reforms to help local areas with gathering…

Today is PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance) Day and I wanted to do a quick post to promote awareness and provide…

Our most popular posts on Speech Blog UK tend to be the ones about speech sounds.  It is an area…

Only 6% of people with learning difficulties are currently in employment. No, I didn't make that shocking figure up, it…

I've been to a couple of events in the last week or so around Undiagnosed Children's Day. As going anywhere…

Tania's note: A parent post today, but it's not a personal tale of an experience with the new Education, Health and…

Accountability for the quality of provision in England's reformed Special Educational Needs and Disability system has long been on parents'…

I have three children. All three have an undiagnosed genetic condition. One is a wheelchair user, has feeding tubes, and…

Today is Undiagnosed Children’s Day, a nationwide event aimed at increasing awareness of SWAN or Syndromes Without A Name (also known as an…

Today I am delighted to introduce Sarah Down who has agreed to write a guest post for us. Sarah is…

Last week, we relaunched our Ask IPSEA legal question and answer service. But wha if your question isn't legal in…

A couple of months ago I was invited to speak at the Academies Show in London on the subject of…

Exciting news today - the relaunch of our ASK IPSEA feature! [caption id="attachment_13634" align="alignright" width="231"] Julie Moktadir[/caption] We had to…

We started the week with a heart-felt letter from a mum about her disabled child. Just as I was thinking I…

Puberty with any teenager can be a tricky business and a time of immense change for everyone in the family.…

I was recently contacted by a mum of a child with additional needs, who expressed sadness to me over her…

By 1 April 2018, local authorities must have transferred all children and young people with statements of SEN to the…

Today we have a lovely guest post from a mum, Michelle Myers, who writes a blog called A Slice of…

So here we are again, Autism Awareness Week. Every year people go to great lengths to fundraise, stage events, write…

In my first SNJ post I gave a brief overview of Bright Futures School and how we use ‘guiding’ (derived…

Last week, the National Autistic Society and Ambitious about Autism sent an open letter to the Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan,…

For most adolescents, moving into adulthood is a natural progression and the move from school to a job or to…

In my December blog I shared that I would follow up on the government’s SEND figures for schools. These are released…

Over 50% of Mental Health problems start in childhood and we are all well aware of the difficulties many children…

It’s been a busy week hasn’t it? The budget revealed further cuts in the offing for disabled people – although…

Late last week, Ofsted released its report on responses from parents, carers and practitioners - anyone with an interest -…

If you have any Lavazza in the kitchen, start percolating. Chocolate chip cookies? Yep, you’ll need them too: this needs…

Tania writes: Today I'm so pleased to bring you a guest article from a highly respected head teacher of a…

In January, we ran a giveaway for a copy of Disabled children, A Legal Handbook.  Congratulations to Lisa Thomas who…

Today, we're helping campaigner, Downs Side Up blogger & our SNJ columnist, Hayley Goleniowska, support Down's syndrome Awareness week. She's…

This week has seen Blind Children UK raising awareness of the lack of "habilitation" services (to help with life skills)…

Where were you when you you were told that your child had a medical diagnosis? Like many major events in…

I had a brilliant time in Birmingham yesterday at the Children's Hospital where they held a vibrant and fun-filled Rare…

Monday 29th February 2016 is quite aptly named Rare Disease Day  - as a leap year it's the rarest day…

Late last week, the DfE published its latest newsletter about the special educational needs and disability reforms. The issue was…

Tania writes: Ask anyone who's been through England's new special educational needs statutory assessment as part of the EHCP process,…

Communication is so much more than just the words we say.  It is an incredibly complicated process; the rules change…

Last year, I was introduced to an exciting new concept for "living" One Page Profiles - using video and other…

The theme of last week's Children's Mental Health week was Resilience and, although I've written about this subject on SNJ…

As all parents and carers of children with additional needs know, it’s the little things that keep us awake at…

How many of us spend significant amounts of our time taking our children to medical appointments, often many miles from…

The government announced recently that £80 million was to be given to improve the implementation of the SEND reforms. £38.5…

This last couple of weeks have been a big ones for the Down’s syndrome parenting community. You would hope that…

It's that time of the term again here in the Aspland household.  Tests! One week every term is handed over…

 On Friday, the Department for Education (DfE) announced that £80 million was to be made available to extend opportunities to children…

In an article on 3rd January, The Independent reported comments from Anna Feuchtwang, Chief Executive of The National Children’s Bureau, regarding,…

When your child has a disability that has made potty training an impossibility, you are left with a growing dilemma…

A story on the BBC website caught my eye the other day about the boy who was the first child…

Specialised help and services for children and adults with rare or undiagnosed conditions has always been hard to find -…

At the end of last year, there was much excitement in the world of SEND when the second edition of…

As soon as they became our neighbours, our mother sent us round to play with the kids next door. Vivacious…

Last January, I wrote about my six goals for families in the Jungle in 2015. They were quite straight forward…

Last year, the National Autistic Society launched a campaign aimed at ending the often seemingly endless wait for a diagnosis…

Tania: Today we start a new series of articles from Zoe Thompson, who has been a regular contributor to our…

So, today we have part two of the answers to the Top 10 questions submitted by you, through SNJ, to…

For our first post of 2016, it's right back into the thick of it. Last year we asked you to…