Karen Sawyer Art Therapy Services

28/01/2026

🚨 Statement on the Murder of Alex Pretti

27/01/2026

Anna Maxwell Martin has called for a rethink on school attendance rules and fines.

Why are so many children struggling to attend school? It’s not laziness, says actor and campaigner Anna Maxwell Martin – it’s that school doesn’t feel like a safe space for many young people.

In a moving call for change, Anna urges policymakers to stop punishing absence and start listening to the real reasons behind it: mental health struggles, trauma, and neurodivergence.

'The reason won’t be because they can’t be bothered. It’s because they are unable to be in school… Fines don’t work. They are exceptionally cruel,' she said.

With punitive attendance policies still widely used – including fines that hit the poorest families hardest – she’s calling for a radical rethink: more pastoral care, more support, more compassion, more consistency.

Should we stop criminalising absence – and start creating schools children feel safe in? Have your say in the comments.

Anna Maxwell Martin was speaking on SEND in the Spotlight, a BBC Woman’s Hour podcast which aims to reimagine support for children with special educational needs.

20/01/2026

Let’s talk about this SEND message — and what it’s really saying.

“Needs met.
Parents involved.
Children thriving.
Support without a fight.”

On paper, it’s perfect.
No SEND parent disagrees with a single word.

But here’s the quiet truth:
every one of those promises already exists in law.

And yet thousands of families are:
• in tribunal
• in crisis
• out of school
• paying privately for statutory support
• or watching their children deteriorate while waiting

So when I see a post like this from Bridget Phillipson , I don’t hear policy.

I hear positioning.

Because this message isn’t about how needs will be met.
It doesn’t mention enforcement.
It doesn’t mention consequences.
It doesn’t mention what happens when local authorities ignore the law.

It reframes SEND as a system that just needs tweaking —
not one that has been systemically failing families for over a decade.

And that line — support without a fight — that’s doing a lot of work.

It could mean earlier help.
It could mean less adversarial processes.

But it could also mean fewer routes to challenge.
Fewer legal levers.
Less ability for parents to push back when support is refused.

SEND parents don’t fight because we enjoy it.
We fight because it’s the only way support currently becomes real.

“Parents involved” sounds warm —
but involved doesn’t mean empowered.
It doesn’t mean equal.
It doesn’t mean listened to when the answer is inconvenient.

This post is reassurance before detail.
Vision before mechanism.
Calm language before hard choices land.

And maybe that’s why it felt noticeable that, on a post about parents being involved, conversation itself wasn’t easily available.

Probably just settings.
But it’s a familiar pattern.

Because involvement only works when voices can actually be heard.

— Tales of a SEND Parent

15/01/2026

15/01/2026

Using Spoons theory or an alternative is the Social Battery - especially helpful with teenagers as they can relate it to their mobile phone battery life - can be really important so that people can become more aware of their own needs & advocate for what reasonable adjustments they need to function in the world on a daily basis.

19/12/2025

The holiday season can be magical and fun, but it can also feel overwhelming and challenging.

Here's some reminders in case you need them today. Share this post with someone who might too.

16/12/2025

It’s such a busy time of year. If you can spare some time to help prepare those that you are spending Christmas with about how your family are going to ‘do’ Christmas, you could ease some of the stress.

Talking with family and friends about what your family needs over Christmas isn’t always easy ❤️
We’ve put together some gentle, practical tips to help make Christmas more autistic-friendly for everyone.

Have a read, and feel free to share with others who might find it helpful: bit.ly/AGNAFC

02/12/2025

This week is Grief Awareness Week, and a chance to recognise how any type of loss can affect our wellbeing.

There’s no right or wrong way to feel — grief affects everyone differently.

If you're finding things difficult, there’s support that can help.

➡️ https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/feelings-and-symptoms/grief-bereavement-loss/

22/10/2025

If you’d like to help shape the future support for people with dyslexia in future & you live with dyslexia now, why not take a moment to complete this survey & share your views

We’re on a mission to make sure every young person with dyslexia gets the support they deserve. Right now, over a million dyslexic children in UK schools face barriers that stop them from showing their true potential, affecting not just their education but their confidence and wellbeing too.

Your voice can change that. By completing our short survey, you’ll help us understand what really works and where support is missing. Together, we can create better resources and build a world where every dyslexic child feels seen, supported, and able to thrive.

Take the survey and help us shape a brighter, more dyslexia-friendly future: https://bit.ly/3IUEmNd

25/09/2025

It’s such a common experience for neurodivergent people, let alone children & adolescents ☹️

The heartbreaking reality of so many neurodiverse children in mainstream school.

Us parents have got to help our children discover their gifting and then create opportunities for them to shine in an environment they're suited to.

We cover this in the Growing Stage our our support programme for parents.
Here's how we did it for our daughter Jade: https://youtu.be/7CHYEgLA3jg?si=6jn5q3Izm8lENwoN

10/09/2025

Hector's House keep up all your amazing work, you are an asset to the community 💕

28/08/2025

O look, the old ‘over diagnosis’ debate has been stoked again, it must be the end of summer & not enough going on the world already so they drag this old chestnut up again.. darn it, I thought I may return from summer break a little less cynical 🤦‍♀️, ok I promise I’ll try harder, starting from …….. now ☺️

Today, former health secretary Jeremy Hunt said “It is now recognised that there is a level of ‘overdiagnosis’ in our system”.

Here’s our response.

Are more people being diagnosed with disorders related to mental health? Yes.

Is there a consensus that these conditions are being ‘overdiagnosed’? No.

There are lots of reasons why people – particularly young people – are experiencing problems with their mental health.

What they need is better access to support, rather than having their grit and resilience questioned.

To us, people experiencing mental illness are some of the most resilient people on the planet.