The Community of HUGS

One of the aims of SEND HUGS is to create a community of parents who can share their experiences as they travel this journey together, while offering ongoing advice, support and connection as and when you need it.

All levels of membership give access to the following:

  • a private Facebook group (coming in April 2026) where you can ask questions and chat to other parents, getting to know others who are going through the same as you and sharing your experiences in a safe, non-judgemental and private space where you can be as anonymous as you like while still developing real friendships through the use of an alias when posting

  • a regular email newsletter to keep you up to date on developments in the SEND world, including updates on the proposed SEND reforms, and share tips and resources on various issues

  • a small but growing library of exclusive written materials on a variety of topics, including how to get support for your child in school, recognising and dealing with different neurodivergent conditions, helping a child who is experiencing EBSA/EBSNA (emotionally-based school avoidance/school non-attendance), and more

  • a glossary of terms used in the SEND world, to help you understand who is involved in helping your child and what they can offer

  • occasional book reviews and recommendations

  • links to other useful resources

and more.

Coffee Club

What’s included?

  • All of the above, plus

  • Email responses to up to two questions per month on SEND support/parenting, delivered within 48 hours

Pricing

£15 per month - the cost of a visit to a coffee shop with a friend for a hot drink and cake

Sign up

Takeaway Team

What’s included?

  • All of the above, plus

  • Email responses to up to five questions per month on SEND support/parenting, delivered within 48 hours

Pricing

£25 per month - the cost of ordering a takeaway to eat at home over a chat with a friend

Sign up

Chef’s Table

What’s included?

  • All of the above, plus

  • Exclusive individual WhatsApp chat offering ongoing support and answering your questions relating to SEND support and parenting on an ad hoc basis throughout the month, with responses guaranteed within 24 hours

Pricing

£45 per month - the cost of a nice meal out at a restaurant with a good friend

Sign up

FAQs

  • For a small monthly fee, you will have access to bespoke advice and support from someone who has both training in SEND law and lived experienced of parenting and obtaining support for neurodivergent children.

    You will also be able to access an ever-growing body of material, including book reviews, a Facebook group (coming in April 2026), and a regular newsletter. Podcasts coming soon.

  • Good question.

    If you have unlimited time and mental resources, you can find all the information you need elsewhere.

    You may be lucky enough to have friends and family who have trodden this path before you and are happy to share their experiences with you.

    Your child may be at a school with a full time Senco who has time on their hands and a full understanding of both the law and your child’s condition, and a limitless supply of Learning Support Assistants to provide one-to-one support to your child.

    You may be strong enough to ignore the gaslighting and parent blaming, or lucky enough never to encounter any.

    You may already have a diagnosis and an EHCP for your child, understand all of the jargon and know all about the options available to you to help your child to thrive.

    If so, then you may not benefit much from membership of the Community of HUGS.

    But if you’re just starting out on this journey, or your journey has stalled due to lack of any of the above, then membership of this community will arm you with many of the tools that you need to get the best outcomes for your child and yourself.

    And the bespoke support which you will be able to access when you need it (within the limits of the service level you have chosen) will provide answers to your specific questions and help you to find the way forward.

  • I’m not a lawyer, and am not qualified to give legal advice. However, I have studied, practised and taught statutory interpretation for over 20 years, and I can help you cut through the legalese and understand your rights and the rights of your child.

    Where necessary, I can also point you in the direction of organisations which are able to provide more specific legal support in the area of SEND.

    As of April 2026, I am working on the IPSEA SEND Law Levels 1-3 training - the gold standard in this field - and have so far passed Level 1 and all modules taken to date of Level 2 with a mark of 100% for each module.

  • No. I can’t even tell you for certain whether your child is actually neurodivergent, because I’m not a diagnostician.

    What I can do is arm you with as much information and as many tools as possible to enable you to:

    • advocate for your child effectively

    • ensure that whether they are neurodivergent or not, you understand as fully as possible what makes your child tick

    • ensure that if they do need extra help and support, they obtain it as quickly and completely as possible.

  • Embracing neurodiversity means that we don’t look for what’s ‘wrong’ with our children and try to fix it, but acknowledge the differences that they have, recognise and address the issues that those differences can cause and celebrate their strengths.

    Employers are increasingly recognising that a team made up of both neurotypical and neurodivergent members can be stronger than one in which all members have the same way of thinking.

    As parents, we love our children and want them to be happy, but our parenting may be constrained by our past experiences and our knowledge of societal norms, which require both ‘good’ parents and ‘good’ children to behave in particular ways.

    A neurodivergent child may find those norms impossibly hard to follow, and communicate this impossibility through increasingly challenging behaviour. When we embrace our children’s neurodiversity, we make the necessary adjustments to our expectations, our parenting behaviour and our children’s environment to enable them to flourish.

    The knowledge and tools that you will obtain from a Community of HUGS membership or one-to-one coaching sessions will help you to make and obtain the adjustments necessary to improve your child’s wellbeing without stifling their individuality.