Home Education SENCO

Home Education SENCO SEND specialist, Teacher, SENCO, NLP coach, and Hypnotherapy practitioner.

Yesterday I introduced the idea of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Today I want to address that base layer of Physiological...
31/05/2026

Yesterday I introduced the idea of Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Today I want to address that base layer of Physiological needs:

This is the bare minimum that children need before they can start to succeed. Unfortunately, this part of the puzzle is not always in place.

There have been moves to improve this on a national level, with initiatives such as free school meals, and pupil premium. But many families are struggling more and more with the cost of living, and some services may not be open to home education families.

My first priority as a Home Education SENCO is to establish what support is required to meet these basic needs. I am not a social worker, or a citizen's advisor. However, I am able to signpost families to the correct services, and help support and advocate for them in order to access these.

There may be other forms of practical support if your child has additional needs.

Within physiological needs, there is, of course, health. As a SEND specialist, I have a particular interest and knowledge of autism and how this impacts living and learning. I also have lived experience of chronic conditions such as Long Covid, ME/CFS and FND. The impact of such conditions on learning is not yet fully understood, but is becoming more common, and support is limited. However, there are ways to navigate this in the home education setting. I will cover chronic conditions specifically in my later posts.

In short, if a child does not have warmth, shelter, food, water, health and sleep, the steps above this will never be complete, and children will have a challenging time meeting that self-actualisation at the top of the pyramid!

So before you spend your savings purely on academic achievement, consider if there are other areas or professionals that may help establish early success.

These may include:

*Citizen's advice
*Early Help
*Social Services
*Food banks
*Sleep consultants
*GPs
*Mental Health Services
*Speech and Language
*Occupational Therapists
*Local HAF programmes or parenting groups
*Faith services
*Housing

And so much more...

⭐️ I’m mum to four children, still navigating the education system with their quirks and neurodivergence. But mostly, w...
31/05/2026

⭐️ I’m mum to four children, still navigating the education system with their quirks and neurodivergence. But mostly, we are a family that likes to travel and watch movies.
⭐️ I’m a qualified teacher, NLP therapist and psychologist, having taught across the age ranges 0-25, including special needs, for over 20 years. I have also worked as an advisory teacher and operations manager in local authorities (so I have a good perspective of that side too). Most recently I have been completing my SENCO award, although I've worked in SENCO roles throughout my career, before the SENCO award was even a thing!
⭐️ I now work part-time as an advisory SENCO for families, where home education is a part of their lives. I am not a traditional tutor, or a traditional therapist, but I combine the two for holistic support. The aim is to provide the same level of SENCO support you would expect in schools, with guidance on meeting targets for additional needs, signposting to resources and services, and support or advocacy.
⭐️Sessions start at £40 per hour, following a thorough two hour assessment session.. There is no requirement for sessions to be weekly, as the aim is to equip families to be independent in supporting their home learners.

❤️ Home education families include:

*Families who are home educating by choice*Families who are home educating due to the school setting not being appropriate.
*Families who are home educating whilst waiting for an appropriate setting.
*Families who are navigating exclusion or medical absence.
*Families whose children attend school but want extra support for home learning.

Please send me a message if you are interested in private sessions, or continue to follow this page for more information.

Thank you!

Those of you who have been trained in education, may have heard of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. It's one of the basic pr...
30/05/2026

Those of you who have been trained in education, may have heard of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. It's one of the basic principles teachers are taught, but to me it is one of the most important.

I've tried to put this hierarchy into the context of home education for the vast majority of children, and will talk a little more about each one over the next few posts.

The idea is to start at the bottom, in order to achieve what is at the top. The lower building blocks need to be in place in order for the rest to happen.

This is where my role is as a practitioner. Rather than acting as a regular tutor, or a regular therapist, I aim to support families holistically, working through each building block.

Watch this space...

In education, children and students are often considered under four broad areas of need. (As per the SEND Code of Practi...
23/05/2026

In education, children and students are often considered under four broad areas of need. (As per the SEND Code of Practice)

1. Communication and Interaction

2. Cognition and Learning

3. Sensory and/or physical

4. Social, Emotional and Mental Health

What’s really important to understand, is that very few children will fall under just one category, and each category can impact another.

It’s also important to know that a child does not have to have SEND to have needs in any one of these areas.

In fact, we all have needs in these areas, the consideration is to understand whether these needs are being met or not.

As a mum, teacher and SENCO, understanding the complexities of these is paramount to building the best provision for a young person, at school and/or at home.

Home Education looks different for so many people. Which are you? Or have I missed any?*We have chosen home education.*...
22/05/2026

Home Education looks different for so many people. Which are you? Or have I missed any?

*We have chosen home education.
*We have made the decision to home educate as school was unsuitable/unobtainable/unsupportive.
*We are home educating whilst waiting for the right placement.
*We home educate part time, as our child is unable to attend school full-time.
*Our child attends school full time, but we need to provide additional support at home.

(Picture is of a friendly goat who followed us around on our holiday to Skegness!)

21/05/2026

All children are entitled to support in schools, and all schools must have a SENCO. This is who organises, directs and monitors the provision across the setting. When children are home schooled, or home educated, it can feel like this support is lost.

I offer support for families as a 'SENCO' but supporting their home education journey. This could involved a number of avenues:

*Planning how education will look for your child.
*Bringing strategies and provision into the home to help them meet their targets.
*Provide help in academic avenues, whatever these may be.
*Provide therapeutic and coaching support to either return to school, or manage the transition to the home.
*Provide advisory and advocacy for families in need.

Support can look very different, depending on your circumstances, this may be in person, online, or a combination of both.

What I can promise is:

*I am a professional with over 20 years experience in education and SEND, at both a school and local authority level.
*I am a trained NLP practitioner, and psychologist, providing holistic support.
*I am fully insured and DBS checked.

Contact me to start your journey.

20/05/2026

Had to share it really… 🤔

I’m still in disbelief! 🤷‍♀️

Hi folks! 👋 After quite a while away, I’m back. I’ve been busy building up my in school SENCO experience and am close to...
20/05/2026

Hi folks! 👋

After quite a while away, I’m back. I’ve been busy building up my in school SENCO experience and am close to that all important NPQSENCO qualification.

The Additional Needs coach has a new direction, renamed as the Home Education SENCO.

My aim is to bring educational experience and therapy together to support families who are home educating. Whether you need support in how that looks on a long term basis, or guidance on how to return to an educational setting, I will act as your SENCO and advocate.

More posts and information to follow, but for now, it’s nice to be back. 😊 👋

(Picture from last holiday in beautiful Scotland, because it’s not all about academics)

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St George’s
Telford
TF29NA

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