Support for SEND

28/05/2026

This!

We need to move away from the narrative of “just say no”, “tell them to stop” or “strengthen your boundaries” as simple solutions.

Parental figures have often already said and tried different approaches long before they reach out for support...

Instead, we need to take a moment to really place ourselves within the reality of what many families are experiencing.

We know these kinds of responses don’t only come from professionals. Parents, carers and guardians often tell us they hear this from friends, family members and those closest to them too.

But this is where listening without judgement becomes so important.

Because when we reduce it to “just say no” we risk reinforcing a parent-blaming narrative, minimising what has been tried by many parental figures already.

28/05/2026

Here's Rory Bremner, rightly, highlighting how the proposed SEND reforms are but smoke and mirrors.

'Recently, the government confirmed that it is pressing ahead with what it calls generational reform of the Send system in the Education For All bill. While the ambition sounds laudable and well-meaning, it is the detail that causes great concern for parents of children with the most severe Send requirements.
Another £4 billion is promised for Send. The money is welcome but if the new system is built on the wrong assumptions it will not save money; it will waste lives. Take the mantra of inclusion. On paper it sounds noble. But to place a child with complex autism or ADHD into a mainstream school, even within a dedicated Send hub, is to expose them to a triggering sensory assault of anxiety, jostling crowds, bullying and stigma. Well-meaning in principle, the policy risks damaging and long-lasting consequences for the vulnerable child and their classmates alike.'

- Rory Bremner, The Times

27/05/2026

I was walking the dog, on a country lane, earlier this evening and automatically said and SIGNED, "Look. There's a bunny!!!" ... to the dog.

Enthusiastic intonnation and all!!!

Early night, definitely needed here! 🤭🥴

(even with the dog!)

27/05/2026

26/05/2026

I loved being at the sensory field today!!! 💜
Annie has summed today up perfectly! 💛

26/05/2026

25/05/2026

25/05/2026

Given that I have had a few new followers recently, I just wanted to say a hello 👋, tell you a little bit about myself and let you know why I now do what I do and why I provide peer support and education for parents and carers of autistic children.

My name is Andrea.

I'm just shy of 42 - although I look 21 😝 - married, and I have three children 18, 16 and 13.

Two of my children are autistic.

One child was diagnosed at 4 and the other child at 10.

My autistic children are different genders and the polar opposite of each other - which is definitely challenging.

One child has only ever had an IEP and remains in school, the other child has an EHCP but is currently home educated.

From 8 to 14, my child, with an EHCP, suffered greatly in school and, despite constantly escalating support (escalating banding, mental health services, etc etc), school was no longer an option for them, past year 9.

Home education has gone very well, though; their mental health is much improved, and they have just taken two GCSEs at a private exam centre!

I have always worked with children and families.

I hold HLTA status and, for roughly 15 years - between the ages of 21 and 36 - I worked as a TA - primarily with autistic pupils - in, both, primary and secondary school (in, both, mainstream and special education).

I retrained as an Early Years Educator, at 37, (however), and I, also, completed Makaton Tutor training, because - after so many turbulent years in our home life - I became determined to contribute to giving children the best start in life and determined to provide that much needed - but often missing - EARLY intervention.

I have, subsequently, worked in the early years, part time, for the last 5 years, and I Iove it just as much as being a HLTA!

Alongside the early years, and up until just last year, I was also working, sessionally, for the Autism Central project, as a peer educator, where I ran parent carer support groups and delivered autism-based training.

Sadly, however, due to an area funding cut, I was made redundant.

So, that is - essentially - now, why I do what I do.

Since November 2025, I have used my non-early year's days, to provide peer support and education to parents and carers of autistic children because that is exactly what I was doing before, only now, by myself!

And I love what I do! 💜💛

Plus, working for yourself has it's upsides.

IE, choosing my own CPD training, I now hold IPSEA SEND Law Level 3 training, which has been invaluable to my role! 🙌

Finally, as well as working with wonderful parents and carers, deeply committed to supporting their children, I, also, get to work alongside other amazing professionals in supporting roles, such as Autism Support Allies, Julie Makaton Tutor and Lauren Young Makaton.

Equally, I get to support campaigns - that I may have been hesitant to support under another's employment - such as the Save Our Children’s Rights campaign, and that makes me feel good and makes me feel proud!

24/05/2026

Yesterday, I posted, and commented on, the recently published 'Common SEN (Mis)Interventions' evidence summary.

I wasn't a fan. (See the post)

But, when I was reading the document, the following sentences actually stood out to me, as good advice.

'However, learning is hugely complex, the companies pushing this stuff have sold
us a confident story, and if we want to give our students the best possible deal, we need
to temper our intuition with evidence.'

Not just good advice in regards the use of interventions, but - changing the context/wording a little - good advice for the public to take into account all of the evidence that suggests the proposed SEND reforms will fail!!!

23/05/2026

What a fantastic review Autism Support Allies !💜

23/05/2026

What I have, personally, taken from the 'Common SEN (Mis)Interventions' evidence summary:

- That the document itself states,

'Firstly, the evidence here is about average effects in mainstream classrooms. There will always be individual students who respond differently to a given intervention, and the picture looks different again in specialist settings and for students
with more profound or complex needs. This summary is by no means the last word for
each student'.

And

- The document reinforces the necessity of assessment to identify individual needs, stating,

'Support tends to be more effective when it follows from specific, assessed learning needs rather than from diagnostic labels (Dockrell et al., 2019; Van Herwegen et al., 2024). The same logic applies to the planning documents around these interventions (EHCPs, student passports,
IEPs), where generic, diagnosis-led strategies fill the space that specific, assessed needs
should.'

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What I have taken personally from the 'Common SEN (Mis)Interventions' evidence summary:

- The release of this document feels like another insinuation that we are somehow 'overindulging' neurodivergent children and young people in mainstream schools - a rhetoric I am sick of.

And

- The semantics of 'diagnostic labels' over simply 'diagnosis' or 'diagnoses' (in the above paragraph) has, yet again - as we read this all the time - the negative pragmatic effect of invalidating the difference in experience of being neurodivergent.

What are your thoughts???

Common SEN (Mis)Interventions - An Evidence SummaryNews|20th May 2026Peps MccreaDirector of Education — SteplabDr Jennifer BarkerDirector of Learning - Ormiston Academies TrustIn a new discussion paper, Dr Jennifer Barker (Ormiston Academies Trust) and Peps Mccrea (Steplab) explore the evidence be...