Neurodiversity Learning Support

This year marked the School’s first collaboration with Neurodiversity Celebration Week, focusing on the strengths neurodivergent children have. SEN teacher, Mr Ben Gibson, explains how BGS celebrates the talents of neurodiverse minds.

Neurodiversity is an umbrella term for conditions like Autism, ADHD and dyslexia, which can provide barriers to learning for children. That said, there are many strengths that neurodivergent people can harness, and this is what Neurodiversity Celebration week is all about, reframing the conversation and changing the understanding of neurodivergence in schools and beyond.

In partnership with Neurodiversity Celebration Week and The ADHD Foundation, we were able to give students the opportunity to take time to understand neurodiversity, whether they are themselves neurodivergent or not. Students were able to visit the umbrella installation where they could read about celebrities and public figures who are neurodivergent and had found success because they understood the strengths that they could draw upon. Students were inspired by these stories, and sometimes surprised that people such as Justin Timberlake, Cara Delevingne, and Billie Eilish are neurodivergent. The idea of a multi-coloured umbrella display was to represent the way that all of our brains and our thinking are different, not better or worse. This pause for thought was very valuable for so many of our students.

We were very lucky to be able to welcome back alumna Devon Ward (BGS 2018) as a guest speaker for our Neurodiversity Celebration Week assemblies. As well as being a former Head Girl, Devon is Autistic and an ADHDer, and was able to provide a very authentic perspective on what it means to be a neurodivergent person and someone that has lived the experiences that many of our students will be facing now. Devon’s talk highlighted some of the huge strengths that being neurodivergent had brought them, whilst also acknowledging the challenges that can arise when living in a primarily neurotypical world. Devon’s academic achievements – currently studying Medicine at Cardiff University, after intercalating in Psychology – is testament to what is achievable for neurodivergent people, but more than this, their talk was delivered in such a way that it was relatable for all our students and enjoyed by teachers and students alike.

It is important that the whole community engage in the conversation and as well as the events for students, we hosted workshops for both staff and parents to explore the ways in which adults can support neurodivergent students. Both the school environment and home, by extension due to home study, can be challenging for our neurodivergent young people, so it was great to be able to interact with teachers and parents. A very well attended Curriculum Conversation welcomed parents who wanted to understand more about how to support their children at home, with many people staying to ask questions afterwards. Our Twilight Workshop for staff was also well attended and it was a really energised session exploring the barriers to learning for our neurodivergent students and how we can help to remove them. Staff attended from both the Junior and Senior School, demonstrating the desire to be able to understand and support our neurodivergent children of all ages.

Speaking of the Junior School, we will be doing a very similar week of events in May, as we believe it is really important for our students to have an understanding and respect for differences as early in their development as possible. Our Umbrella Installation and other events will hopefully be able to start those conversations and continue them for years to come.

It was a real joy to be able to host BGS’s Neurodiversity Celebration Week and see all of our students starting conversations, asking questions, and generally being curious about neurodivergent people. I look forward to carrying on this important dialogue.