Sharon
About
Having spent the latter part of my career working with the LEA in an advisory capacity, I have a keen interest in supporting individuals with the varying needs that present themselves when teaching children with SEND. Whilst I never profess to be an expert in every field, I work with practitioners at all stages of their career to support with identifying, learning and growing within the SEND field.
Whether that is as small as supporting on assessments or early identification, or on a larger scale; working together with leaders and all staff on projects that help their school to become more sensory friendly, adapting their SEND curriculum and ultimately transforming SEND philosophies within the school and the wider communities.
I believe that every part of the process is integral to guiding schools to move forward with integrating SEND as an embodied part of the way they operate.
To help create this understanding and education for practitioners, as well as the below training courses, I provide a bespoke Consultancy service to schools and nurseries.
This means, I can build and tailor a collaborative approach to the change we are looking to create and guide individuals to learn about some of the hidden factors they may not know about.
After all, we don't know what we don't know!
My work ethic centres around the belief that all children deserve access to the best possible education, and that their needs are met in a creative and inclusive way. My aim is to empower Teachers, Practitioners, and parents to make a real difference to the lives of these children. I will never tell people 'what to do' without listening and understanding first; every situation and environment is unique, and therefore so is that child
Life Before Training
I was lucky to have a very varied career before deciding to go into teaching. I have been able to explore the business world having appointments within Warwick University, The National Insurance department and even spent some time working abroad in the Balearics and Portugal.
When my first child was born, I stayed at home with him for seven years - which was just fantastic! During that time, I volunteered in his nursery class and this reignited my passion for working with children. So, when my second child started school, I decided to retrain so that I could work with children again - this time as an Educator.
Initially I studied NVQ Levels 2 and 3 in Childcare and Education through evening classes before I was offered a job at a school as a Special Educational Needs Assistant. I went to Warwick University to complete my BA (Hons) in Childcare and Education. The rest is history!
I spent just over a decade working in schools and having always taught a high proportion of children with SEND in my classes. My fascination with behaviour, SEND and additional needs began to grow.
In my last role I was fortunate enough take a position as a specialist within the LEA advising, supporting, and guiding schools, children and parents with pupils who were in the early diagnosis stage.
This role was 360, working with all influences around a child's life, helping them to move from the identification stage through to diagnosis and all that is in-between. It was an unbelievably fulfilling role. I was responsible for supporting the parents as they processed the change, end-to-end on assessment through to multidisciplinary meetings, training staff on how to work with children with these needs, and supporting the children's transition to SEND settings.
Now, I create and deliver a variety of courses that are tailored to the individual needs of SEND children, as well as Level 3 SENDCO in Early Years Award and Level 3 Speech, Language and Communication Needs (in Children and Young People) Award.
What key information about SEND should education staff be aware of?
Did you know that 60% of young offenders in prison have a speech and language difficulty?
These young offenders are twice as likely to reoffend within 12 months of them coming out of prison.
They can't articulate, they can't express themselves. If a person's gone through the whole of their educational life, not understanding what's going on or engaging with anything, they will likely develop behavioural difficulties and probably be excluded from school. You can see the snowball effect that happens.
The solution is simple: it's called 'early intervention' and it works!
Qualifications
I hold a BA (Hons) in Early Childhood and Education, as well as several NVQs in Childcare.
Testimonial
I enjoyed the examples for different sensory processing, and how to adapt the environment to get them achieve the best of the outcomes.