Our world is changing but our education system has yet to catch up. In the workplace home working and relaxed spaces are now common place and we think that there is good reason for that. Most people are at their best in environments that encourage and support them. One size certainly does not fit all and yet we are still expecting that at school.
We know that making adaptation in busy classrooms is much harder than it sounds and reasonable adjustments can feel unreasonable when added to an ever growing list of demands. By taking a new look at behaviour and environment, and considering our own responses, small changes can make a difference. It is very often the case that values are not always what is perceived to be valued and this can lead to conflict.
We offer INSET, small group training and consultancy to support your staff to establish psychologically safe classrooms and workplaces and identify ways to support those who may have sensory overwhelm.
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Supporting Staff
We support teachers and support staff to take a proactive approach in identifying sensory triggers and micro transitions and seek ways to minimise these. We believe that the key to this is allowing staff to vocalise their experiences as much as it is to initiate techniques and strategies.
From £80.00 per hour
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CPD and INSET
Are your values valued by your children? How do transitions challenge some children and what can we do to validate how they feel? How do your neurodivergent children experience school?
We offer twilight sessions as well as INSET in: classroom environment; supporting neurodivergent children and what inclusion really means. We can tailor our approach to your school so let us know how we can help.
From £125 per hour for small group sessions
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SEND support
We offer bespoke support. Working with your inclusion departments to maximise your resources and identify areas for development. We work with staff, children and parents to ensure that all voices are reflected in your inclusion offer.
From £80.00 per hour
What people are saying…
“Putting the neurodivergent lens on my everyday practice will help with patience and understanding in my role. I also felt that the content of the presentation would help me to navigate potentially emotive meetings with parents more smoothly.” Alice, School Leader, Lewes
“Training really helped us to look at the classroom through the eyes of the children and explained why some of what we were doing was not working. really invaluable!” Laura, English teacher, Sussex
“Charlie Parker from, Connection First came to visit us at St Martin's and delivered training to all staff on, neurodiversity, support and 'quick wins' in the classroom. Charlie's empathetic, compassionate approach to and the her belief that 'children will do well when they can,' has had a huge impact on staff understanding and practise. Training around the sympathetic nervous system and behaviours of fight, flight, freeze and fawn gave staff an excellent insight into why children react in the way they do. Charlie, understands the primary classroom and shared a plethora of practical ideas around environment, planning, intervention and communication to support children, enabling them to access their learning in school. I had excellent feedback from staff who attended the training and have since noticed a shift in our approach on a day-to-day basis. Charlie has an absolute wealth of experience and I highly recommend Connection First. Thank you, Charlie.” Claire - SENCO Brighton
“I found it incredibly informative, engaging and Charlie spoke with real compassion and passion.” Jenny, West Sussex
“Charlie at Connection First proved an invaluable support for our school. Her expertise, alongside an incredibly calm and considered approach allowed us to implement invaluable intervention to support children from the very first meeting. I would thoroughly recommend. We will certainly be calling on Connection First in the future.” Leanne - school leader Hove
“The training had a personal feel to it which enabled me to connect with the issues discussed more easily. “ Teacher, East Sussex
