People, places and tools I trust
Parents ask me all the time who I know, where I would look and whether there is someone I trust with a particular part of the picture.
I do not want this to become a giant directory. The people, places and tools here are included because I have a genuine personal or professional reason for putting my name next to theirs.
That does not make any of them automatically right for your child. It means I think they are worth knowing about.
Schools and learning environments
Barbra Robinson and Orion College ↗
Barbra has a particular place in our family’s story because she was one of the people who recognised that what was most visible in James was not the whole picture. That ability to see past the presenting difficulty is why she is here.
Worth exploring if: you are looking at a supported school environment and want the conversation to include who the learner is as well as where they are struggling. Visit Orion College ↗
EDU360 ↗
I know EDU360 professionally and through my work around different educational pathways. I value having somewhere to point families when the question has become bigger than simply choosing another conventional school.
Worth exploring if: you are considering a different educational environment, level of support, curriculum or qualification route and need to see what other possibilities exist. Visit EDU360 ↗
Disclosure: I have an active professional relationship with EDU360.
Assessment and medical support
Naledi Mokoena, Leeto Child Development Centre ↗
Naledi is an educational psychologist whose work I have seen through other families. She belongs here because there are questions that need proper professional assessment rather than educational interpretation.
Worth exploring if: you need an educational psychologist or psychoeducational assessment to understand the learner more fully. Visit Leeto Child Development Centre ↗
Dr Moray Shirley ↗
Moray is our family doctor and somebody I trust with the complicated bits. I value having a GP who is comfortable looking at the wider child rather than treating attention, mental health, physical health, sleep and school functioning as completely separate concerns.
Worth exploring if: you are looking for a family doctor comfortable working with children, adolescents, ADHD and mental-health concerns. Visit Family Doctor Broadacres ↗
Parent and family support
Lauren Fischer and Harmony at Home ↗
A child may have an army of support while the parent is carrying everything largely alone. Lauren’s work gives me somewhere to refer families when the parent, the relationships around the child or the family as a whole need support.
Worth exploring if: you need support for your own wellbeing, parenting or family relationships rather than another educational intervention for the child. Visit Harmony at Home ↗
Tools and platforms
Dalza ↗
Dalza tackles a problem I knew personally long before I worked with the company: reports in one place, school communication in another, therapist information somewhere else and years of history being carried largely inside one parent’s head.
Worth exploring if: your child has multiple reports, teachers or professionals involved and you need a parent-controlled way of keeping the information connected and usable. Visit Dalza ↗
Disclosure: I work with Dalza.
Why the list is short
I would rather recommend six people, places or tools and be able to explain why than fill a page with names I barely know. I will add to this collection over time, consciously.
A recommendation here is still a starting point. Teams change, people move and no service is right for every learner or family. Ask questions and decide whether the fit makes sense for you.