Ideas Workshop

Welcome to our creative space — a place for ideas, stories, and concepts that challenge, inspire, and drive more inclusive thinking in education, community, and psychology.

What is the Ideas Workshop?

The Ideas Workshop is a vibrant place for innovation and inclusion. We invite educators, parents, psychologists, community leaders, and anyone passionate about inclusive practice to share their thoughts, writing, and research. Whether you’ve got a personal story, a bold new concept, or a research-based article - we want to hear it.

When you contribute, your work may be featured on our website. If it resonates with us and others, we may even publish it more widely.

How to Contribute

Here’s how you can get involved:

  1. Write Your Piece

    • Ideas + stories + research are all welcome.

    • You decide the format (essay, article, case study, personal reflection).

  2. Send to Us

    • Email your submission to inclusive.solutions@me.com

    • Let us know who you are (name, role) and a little about why this matters to you.

  3. What Happens Next

    • We’ll review your contribution.

    • If we decide to share it on the site, we’ll contact you to discuss how.

    • You can retain full credit for your work; we value your voice.

Featured Ideas & Concepts

Here are some of the powerful ideas that have been shared with us:

  • Fresh Approaches to Transition

    • How we’re rethinking the move from primary to secondary school using MAPS, PATH, and circles of friendship to create stronger, more inclusive transitions for young people.

    • Do contact us direct if you think any of these approaches could help in the transition of a child you are involved with.

  • Canoe Metaphor – Tackling Anxiety
    The Canoe Metaphor explains anxiety as the experience of paddling a canoe through a dark minefield - feeling confused, overwhelmed, unfocused, and expecting the worst. It encourages people to identify their stressors, recognise their strengths and supports, and focus on the practical actions they can control to navigate their way to safety.

  • 4 Questions for Change
    A powerful decision-making tool from Jack Pearpoint and Marsha Forest to shift conversations:

    1. What are we doing well right now?

    2. What could we improve?

    3. What could we do differently?

    4. What can we act on within 48 hours?

Research & Thought Leadership

We also curate and share cutting-edge research and practices:

  • Values of Behaviour Specialists
    Effective Behaviour Support - A paper by John O’Brien & David Pitonyak that links professional values to inclusive practice.

  • Revision ideas

    • Get Revising website allows you create revision resources.

    • The National Autistic Society have revision guidelines for parents and teachers of young people with autism spectrum disorders.

  • The Power of Imitation
    Drawing on Montessori’s ideas, this explores how imitation is a natural and powerful way for children to learn — especially when typical developmental models don’t apply.

  • The Problem with IQ [link to blog post]
    A critical look at how we use IQ scores, and whether they truly reflect intelligence, especially for people with complex needs.

  • Revolutionary Common Sense
    A manifesto: “Disability is a natural part of the human experience.” Let’s shift the narrative from fixing people to changing how we think, speak, and act.

  • Philip Awofesobi’s Rap
     A moving story about resilience, creativity, and inclusion, told through the voice and art of Philip, a Learning Mentor.

  • Undercover Teams
    A restorative-justice-inspired approach to bullying that emphasises relationship repair rather than punishment.

  • People First Language

    • Reflection and guidance on how language shapes inclusion — using respectful and accurate terminology.

    • Email Mole Chapman to receive your own free copy of “Word Power – the art of respectful language” at info@equalitytraining.co.uk.

  • Using Puppets in Learning
    A creative piece about how puppets can engage, motivate, and make learning more inclusive for children with different needs.

  • Embodied Practice

Agents of Hope Podcast

Agents of Hope is a podcast for anyone interested in Education, Psychology and social issues. Dr Tim Cox, who has recently completed a Doctorate in Applied Educational Psychology, the podcast aims to engage in long form critical discussion about issues that arise in the field of applied psychology. Each episode explores the practice, values and theory behind the practice of each guest. 

This episode of Agents of Hope features Colin talking about his time as an EP, including work on PATH, inclusion and hope.

You can follow Tim on twitter @timceducation and if you are interested in listening to the podcast you can listen here (or wherever you listen to your podcasts)

Why Your Ideas Matter

Your voice has the power to change how people think about inclusion. By sharing:

  • You add to the collective knowledge of inclusive practice

  • You help shape real-world solutions in education and community

  • You become part of a network of changemakers who believe in hope, dignity, and systemic transformation

If you're ready to contribute, or if you just want to talk through an idea, get in touch. Email us at inclusive.solutions@me.com or call us on 0115 955 6045

We're excited to hear from you and journey together toward a more inclusive future.

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