nasen Awards 2023 Winners

David is a long standing and much respected leader of SEND. Former Chair of the National SEND Forum and currently a Trustee for the Shaw Academy Trust.

Sponsored by Seashell

Emily facilitated the project that sees a committee of Year 3-6 pupils take on the role of ‘champions’ of SEND in their school, working together to make real change. The committee has organised Makaton classes, started an art initiative, and even held a dyspraxia disco, complete with lights and dance tutorials, all whilst providing senior leaders with constant feedback and ideas on what needs to change. The pilot has been so successful that Emily has since expanded the project within the wider Girls Day School Trust and is recruiting neurodiversity champions across all the schools!

Sponsored by IDL

Neurodiversity at Work Research Centre (NWRC), launched in 2023, is Southeast Asia's first research centre focusing on connecting neurodivergence workers to meaningful employment and supporting SEND through inclusive workplaces accessible to people with disabilities. It is a collaborative effort between Sasin, a premier international business school in Thailand, and Steps, Thailand's leading consultancy for workplace accessibility.

Sponsored by The Edwin Group

Choices College is a post-16 institution offering work experience for young adults aged 16-25, with autism and learning disabilities. It began as an idea from its National Lead, Linda Selby MBE. Alongside a career in Pathology in the NHS, Linda has been a carer for Stevie (her nephew) for 45 years. Stevie is profoundly disabled with cerebral palsy and attended a specialist school, where Linda formed a close relationship with the teachers there. As a result, classes from the school were regularly invited to visit the hospital, where Linda worked. Now in 2023 Linda's programme has expanded to 20 national cohorts and 17 NHS Trusts working to increase opportunities for young people and has trained over 1000 employer mentors on learning disability awareness to increase inclusivity in the workplace.

Sponsored by Christie and Co

Maham is a 22-year-old deaf student at Hopwood Hall College. She is about to complete a Level 3 Diploma in Beauty Therapy and states that she loves being deaf. Maham has a very positive outlook on life, continuously working to expand her personal, social, and academic skills. She has progressed from a Skills for Life course in college, to a Level 1, 2 and 3 in Hairdressing, Level 2 in Beauty and is about to complete a Level 3 Beauty Therapy course. She is in the process of becoming a self-employed Beauty Therapist and has chosen to further expand her skill set by studying Level 3 Media Makeup from September 2023. Maham is inspirational, and the college has been privileged to be part of the progress she has made in becoming a successful young woman and demonstrating to all that, in her words, ‘Nothing is impossible’.

Sponsored by Seashell

Equality, diversity, and inclusion are at the heart of Derwen college. Breaking down barriers and challenging preconceptions are what they do every day. They enable students with a wide range of special educational needs and disabilities to achieve their ambitions – for most, the aspirations include future employment, maximum independence, love, and friendship.
Most students learn work skills in the college’s unique ‘Marketplace’ which is open to the public and includes a garden centre and a gift shop, charity shop, café, restaurant, and small hotel. As they progress, students embark on external weekly work placements with one of the College’s many business partners. Of their 2021-22 graduates, 30 out of 43 (69%) are now in paid or voluntary work or further training.

Sponsored by Axcis Education

Sir Alexander Fleming Primary School has expanded its SEND provision from one to two dedicated spaces, Patch for Reception and Key Stage 1 children and Den for Key Stage 2 children, focusing on teamwork, leadership, and problem-solving. There is also The Hive, a dedicated SEND classroom for children below age expectations, providing support and confidence building. It can seat up to ten children, reducing the need for a Teaching Assistant and achieving remarkable progress. The school offers TLC with a psychology-trained inclusion support assistant, implementing SEMH interventions like drawing, talking, and Lego therapy, and group interventions like 'respecting differences'.

Sponsored by Whole School SEND

Rob, a Study Support Assistant Lead at Barnet & Southgate College, is a key member of the Supported Learning team, responsible for managing around 90 Study Support Assistants for students with SEN needs, including complex, profound, behaviour, and autism/neurodiversity. His expertise and commitment are vital to the provision's success. Rob employs high-level skills to manage and support his team with integrity, knowledge, and empathy. He uses exemplary techniques to support young people, including small group, 1:1, and large group sessions, and effectively de-escalates and distracts behaviour features.
 

Sponsored by nasen Connect

Georgina is the author of two books for children with SEND; '100 Ways Your Child Can Learn Through Play' (published by JKP June 2021) and 'How to Boost Reading and Writing Through Play' (published by JKP November 2022). Her books help parents and teachers to support children with SEND through play-based activities. Georgina also founded The SEN Resources Blog, one of the most popular SEND websites in the U.K. It provides support for families and teachers of children with SEND. Her blog has a huge online community now of over 35k people and her website is free to access. It is also regularly featured in national newspapers- including the Guardian, Telegraph and Independent. During the pandemic she recorded free daily videos of play based activities to help families of children with SEND access home learning. Georgina hosts the very popular 'SEND in the Experts with Georgina Durrant' podcast which is currently the UK's most listened to podcast about SEND and regularly charts in the top 30 education podcasts on Apple. She shares the expertise of her guests to raise awareness of specific SEND and helps teachers to feel more confident in their support of children with SEND in their classrooms.