Our work is driven by the children, teens, adults, and families we serve – those navigating life through the lens of neurodiversity.
This is Grace’s story – one of the many real experiences that inspired us to create our school and family centre. Grace is 12 years old and, like so many others, cannot thrive in an education system that wasn’t built for her. This is her ongoing journey – a story of challenges, setbacks, and the ways she has been let down by a system that simply doesn’t fit her needs.
Grace’s Story
Grace was a bright and curious little girl, but from her very first days in preschool, she found the world a difficult place to navigate. She struggled to settle, unable to engage or speak with staff. When she started primary school, she would hide under the table, silent and withdrawn.
At age four, Grace was diagnosed with Selective Mutism. With patient support, she began to make progress. Her teachers soon saw how intelligent she was - an academically bright child who loved to learn when she felt safe. With understanding adults around her, Grace found happiness in her primary school years.
As she grew older, though, sensory difficulties began to play a bigger role in her life. Noise, touch, smells and tastes became overwhelming. In Year 5, the school referred Grace for an autism assessment. They also applied for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) to ensure she would get the support she needed. Despite clear evidence of her needs, the Local Authority decided not to issue one.
Thankfully, Grace had a wonderful teacher in Years 5 and 6 - someone who truly understood her, adapted the classroom for her, and helped her to thrive. Her parents were deeply grateful for this. But they also knew that the transition to secondary school would be hard, and that Grace would need far more support than before. They applied again for an EHCP.
This time, it would take over two years to be issued.
In the meantime, Grace started secondary school. On the surface, she seemed to be coping. In reality, she was masking - suppressing her autistic traits to fit in, trying desperately to manage an environment that was too much for her. Her body began to show the strain: constant headaches, stomach aches, exhaustion and meltdowns after school. Eventually, Grace experienced autistic burnout.
It was heartbreaking and traumatic for the whole family. After weeks of trying to get Grace back into school, her parents realised that the effort was harming her more than helping. They made the incredibly difficult decision to stop.
Not long after, Grace finally received her autism diagnosis, and the Local Authority issued her EHCP. But it came far too late. The damage had been done. Grace was traumatised, and even a year later she is still recovering.
Today, Grace and her family face a new challenge. There is no suitable school locally for a child like Grace - autistic, bright, and caught between mainstream and special school. Her parents are now preparing for a tribunal with the Local Authority to fight for an education that meets her needs, possibly through an online setting.
For now, Grace is being lovingly home educated by her parents - because at the moment, the choice is between home education and no education at all.
