Family Pathway

01/10/2026

We’re so excited to be starting the next chapter of MasteringME with our new MasteringME Ambassador Programme. 💜

This programme is about more than preparing young people for employment. It’s about creating the space for young people to shape what meaningful employment, training and progression should actually look like for them.

Our Ambassadors will be helping us to design the next stage of MasteringME, drawing on their own experiences to explore the employment routes that work, the barriers that need to change, and the support that genuinely enables young people to thrive.

We’re incredibly grateful to the employers, organisations and partners who have already opened doors and created real opportunities for our young people. Those collaborations have helped us reach this point — and now our young people are taking a leading role in what comes next.

Designed by young people, for young people.
Young people leading change. Creating opportunities. Shaping better routes into employment. 💜

01/10/2026

Assistive technology is not a bag of tricks.

It is not about finding the newest app, buying another piece of software or assuming that one tool will work for every learner.

Effective assistive technology starts with the person.

What does this learner need to be able to do?
What is getting in the way?
Where and when does that barrier occur?
What matters to them?
And what tool, strategy or adjustment might genuinely increase their independence and participation?

The SETT framework gives us a useful way of thinking about this:
Student → Environment → Tasks → Tools
Notice that the tool comes last.

That matters.

Assistive technology works best when it is personalised, purposeful and embedded within the learner’s everyday environment and when the learner, family and professionals are part of the conversation.

The goal isn’t simply to get a child using technology.

The goal is access, agency, participation, independence and belonging.

Different learner. Different context. Different solution.

30/09/2026

If you are at the Education Show in on Friday, we very much look forward to meeting you.
Pop over and say hello. Elsa

29/09/2026

If you are at the Education Show in on Friday, we very much look forward to meeting you.

Pop over and say hello. Elsa

25/09/2026

Choosing a secondary school is about more than the open evening presentation. It’s a chance for you and your child to explore the school, ask questions and get a feel for whether they’ll be supported to belong and thrive.

We’ve put together a few questions to take with you, particularly if your child may need extra support with the move to Year 7. You know your child best—take the time to find out what their experience at the school could really be like.

Save these slides for your next school visit. 💛

25/09/2026

I am delighted and deeply honoured to have received two nominations at the Mastering Diversity Awards 2026:

🌟 Cognitive and Neurodiversity Champion
🌟 Community Champion

Through Family Pathway, I have worked to support neurodivergent children, young people and families, challenge barriers to inclusion, and create opportunities that recognise each person’s individual strengths, experiences and aspirations.

I am particularly proud of the work we are developing through MasteringME, alongside our wider personalised and specialist support for neurodivergent young people and adults. At the heart of this work is a strengths-based, person-centred coaching approach that supports people to understand themselves, build positive identities and recognise their own strengths and potential.

We recognise that people are complex, individual and constantly developing — and our support is designed around the whole person, rather than a label, diagnosis or perceived deficit.

Through MasteringME, this means helping young people build confidence, develop independence and access meaningful opportunities in education, employment and community life, while ensuring their voice, identity and aspirations remain central to the journey.

Thank you to everyone who has supported this work and to those who took the time to put these nominations forward. This recognition also belongs to the young people, families, colleagues and community partners who bring this work to life.

The Mastering Diversity Awards will take place at Senedd Cymru on Thursday 19 November 2026.

The Community Champion category is sponsored by Final Rentals.

✨ There is still time to recognise another deserving individual, team or organisation by submitting a nomination.

https://form.jotform.com/262104739572055

Find out more about the Awards:

https://masteringdiversity.com/awards-2026

22/09/2026

𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐀𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞; 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞, 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠.
Every learner’s needs are different. Access Arrangements are based on evidence of how a learner works, the barriers they experience and the support that enables them to participate successfully.
They are not determined by diagnosis alone. A learner’s normal way of working in the classroom is an important part of understanding what support may be appropriate.
The aim is simple: to ensure assessments measure a learner’s abilities, rather than the barriers they face.

22/09/2026

Really privileged to have joined the 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐙𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, led by 𝐇𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥’𝐬 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥, alongside senior leaders from the school and 𝐃𝐫 𝐏𝐚𝐮𝐥 𝐃𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐬, 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐚𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐃𝐇𝐃.

One of the questions I was asked was:

“𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞?”

My initial response is captured in this image.

For me, so much of the pressure we see families carrying is not created by their child’s neurodivergence. It comes from having to repeatedly navigate systems that were not designed to anticipate or respond flexibly to difference.

Our discussion also explored how easily ADHD can still be missed, particularly in girls. 𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐀𝐃𝐇𝐃 𝐢𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫-𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧: 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

Girls may not present with the more visible hyperactivity that people have traditionally associated with ADHD. Inattention, internalised difficulties, masking and co-occurring anxiety can make the underlying neurodevelopmental difference much easier to overlook.

And then some brilliant practice from Howell’s School — sharing how thoughtfully designed, inclusive classrooms and skilled universal provision can reduce barriers before a learner has to struggle enough to receive something different.

That feels like the direction we need to keep moving in.

𝐋𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧.
𝐋𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐡𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬.
𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧.

20/09/2026

As our Year 7s begin to settle into secondary school, I wanted to share some reflections from families I have been working alongside.

One recurring theme has been the experience of engaging with school platforms such as ClassCharts, particularly where parents and young people are receiving regular reds, ambers or behaviour notifications.

These systems can be really useful, but we also need to think carefully about how information is communicated, how often it is received, and the impact it can have on a young person’s wellbeing, identity and sense of themselves as a learner.

For parents, the move from having one familiar class teacher in primary school to navigating communication across multiple teachers and systems can also feel very different.

As we support Year 7 transition, perhaps this is an important moment to consider not only what we communicate, but how we communicate it — and how we maintain relational, person-centred contact alongside digital systems.

I explore this further here:

Discover why Class Charts notifications can trigger anxiety in Year 7 families and how schools can transform app data into supportive communication.

19/09/2026