IT STARTED WITH
LISTENING
listening to the people being affected
Different support groups sharing their experiences revealed commonalities across all societal systems:
misunderstanding * dismissal * gaslighting * unfair judgement
People from different backgrounds, locations & circumstances were all describing the same repeated harms.
So many formal complaints, reporting, escalations, tribunals, expulsions, school avoidance, health declines, not in education or employment
yet no-one is looking at the problem as a whole
nor realising it's all connected.
& CURIOSITY
in wanting to understand the "why?"
Over time, one thing became impossible to ignore: This was not simply a lack of awareness or
support — it was discrimination.
A term we use to describe the discrimination experienced by neurodivergent individuals, children, young people or adults with SEND.
A form of discrimination so
normalised and deeply embedded within systems that many people
were not even aware it existed.
Much like ageism or sexism, the term gives language to a form of inequality that has too often remained unnamed, minimised or misunderstood.
NAMING THE PROBLEM
Definition of SENDism:
SENDism
/ˈsɛndɪz(ə)m/
noun
[ discrimination ]
The discrimination of people with special educational needs and disabilities through systems, institutions, attitudes, or practices that fail to account for neurodivergent reality.
LEADING BY EXAMPLE
Damage on individuals
SENDism harms development & mental health with consequences that extend
into adulthood, defining worth, esteem, confidence, identity and opportunity.
You have the power
Young people, parents, professionals and advocates can speak out anonymously.
By collecting your lived experiences
these patterns will become visible.
Damage on society
SENDism places pressure on public services, reduces opportunity, hope
and limits economic contribution, it is a human and societal cost affecting everyone.
You lead the way
Your experience can expose what needs
to change and help those in power to appropriately redesign systems so they work fairly and inclusively for everyone.
YOUR VOICE MATTERS - YOUR STORY MATTERS
​Every submission strengthens the case for change.
Individual experience
Sharing your story of SENDism
helps make the invisible visible.
Universal experience
Together we reveal the scale,
pattern and impact of SENDism.
Collective power
Individuals may be dismissed, but
an entire community is hard to ignore.
​Together, we can expel SENDism
in school, in work, in society, in life.