Libby, Donna and Bernadette were on the advisory panel for the NHS England commissioned Autism and parental blame study. In this episode they they discuss their reasons for wanting to be involved, the implications of parental blame and some of the other aspects covered by the report. You can access the report in full https://www.wm-adass.org.uk/improvement/autism-and-parental-blame-research. They all feel very strongly that the messages which are delivered within the report MUST be shared as widely as possible so that we can move forward. Families must get the help they need, not the blame they might receive instead through a damaged system.
Donna has organised a conference in Stafford for 28th January. If you are interested contact voiceforchange@btinternet.com

Libby interviews Jodie about autistic burn-out. This is a topic everyone needs to know about as it is certainly on the increase and is very damaging to the child or young person. Jodie is an independent specialist working with autistic children, their families and their schools, who has written two books on the topic.
One for children and young people: 'Young, autistic and burnt out' https://amzn.eu/d/a0XMWRv
and one coming out later this month for parents and professionals: 'Stop the World I Want to Get Off: A guide to understanding and supporting the recovery of autistic burnout in children and young people https://amzn.eu/d/bqjX5aU

She is also the author of The Secret Life of Rose https://amzn.eu/d/e4lFBIz which I highly recommend to anyone wanting to know more about autism, including children themselves.

Dawn interviews Rachel Winder about what it really means to be neurodivergent-affirming. Rachel was diagnosed as autistic with dyslexia and ADHD in her forties, has become an 'accidental' neurodivergence influencer. We have known Rachel a number of years now while we have been on our journey to get it right. We realise that it is a work in progress but we are passionate to make it the best it can be. Listen to Rachel's views here.

DLD is the biggest learning difficulty you've never heard of. 2 out of every class have it. At Small Talk most of the SLTs have extra training in order to be confident about diagnosing it and working with children with DLD. We are passionate about making a difference for children who have it. Listen to Libby and Dawn discuss their views.

Libby discusses the new book that she has been working on with Georgina Smith and Laura Graham. Georgina Smith, a specialist dyslexia assessor and tutor, and Laura Graham, independent occupational therapist and sensory integration practitioner teamed up with Libby on this project to look at why many children are struggling at school with literacy but it's not all due to dyslexia. This team of professionals all practice clinically and bring a wealth of experience along with tried and tested advice and strategies to help parents and teachers alike gain the correct support for the young people in their care. Topics covered include:
*Developmental Language Disorder *Dyslexia *Developmental Coordination Disorder *Cerebral Visual Impairment *Autism *Attention Deficient Hyper Activity Disorder *Trauma *Sensory Processing Differences *Anxiety *Executive Functioning *Auditory Processing Disorder
Georgina's website https://www.dyslexia-codebreakers.co.uk/
Laura's website https://lauragrahamot.co.uk/
Join them at the book launch 10th October 2024 https://www.eventbrite.com/e/book-launch-what-if-its-not-dyslexia-tickets-1023433616497?aff=oddtdtcreator

Libby interviews the lovely Danielle about her experience of PDA and also her new book Black Rainbow about a family's PDA journey through
https://amzn.eu/d/9pr6aGQ

Cathy organised 2 very successful conferences last year. This year she is going bigger and better! She has all the experts on NLA in one place including Marg Blanc and Barry Prizant. It's online over 5 days with the recording available to tickets holders for 6 months. Check out her website for details of the conference and to buy tickets. https://thespeechden.com/ Parents recieve a discount and there's an early bird rate til tonight!

Small Talk Speech and Language Therapist Dawn Tomalin interviews the brilliant Laura Kerbey, Autism & Education Consultant and Author. They discuss PDA and Laura's recent book about PDA for teens. Laura has been working with young people with a range of learning difficulties for over 20 years, but er passion has always been working with and teaching those who are autistic. Having worked in schools and colleges, she understands the barriers to learning that autism creates and the frustration and anxiety that this causes to student's, their parents and staff alike.

Her empathetic approach has always enabled her to engage and work effectively with young people especially those with PDA.