It Takes a Village! to raise a child: Celebrating Neurodiversity & Culture

Welcome to It Takes a Village! to raise a child: Celebrating Neurodiversity & Culture event happening on Sat Oct 05 2024 at Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham. Join us for a day filled with inspirational talks, workshops, and discussions celebrating the uniqueness of neurodiverse individuals and the richness of black British culture.

What's happening in schools?

So many of our children are struggling with their identity culture, self-esteem, confidence and learning. Although they've got the world at their finger-tips through social media, in many ways they're still isolated and confused. The young people struggling most, tend to be either neurodivergent and belong to an 'othered' group: [neurodiverse/Black diaspora/LGBTQ] or all of the above. There are many intersectionalities which need to be embraced.

Being autistic, ADHD, dsylexic or other neurodiverse, can make home or school life challenging, due to issues around communication, different learning styles and managing emotions. These learning challenges can create feelings of anxiety, frustration or anger.

What can we (the Village) do to make the school experience easier for our neuro-unique kids and their parents to access? The event starts with a live panel talk, in which our inspirational experts share their ideas and experiences. After the panel, the floor will be open for your questions!

Panellists:

Laura Henry-Allain, MBE,

Laura Henry-Allain MBE is an award-winning international educationalist, storyteller, producer, and consultant and creator of the well-loved, award-winning, first Black British animation, JoJo and Gran Gran global series, developed and produced by CBeebies, and is the series producer. Laura has a new children’s animation that is currently in development.

Laura has worked with several global brands, including Paramount, Mattel, Moonbug, Hasbro, John Lewis, Comic Relief and Bafta. Her bestselling children's books include My Skin, Your Skin and My Family, Your Family. Her new book, Maya and Marley, centres on an Adventure Playground. Laura is a board member of the Children’s Media Foundation and vice president of The British Association of Early Childhood Education. She is also a patron of the Grenada Community Library, mentor to the Grenfell Memorial Quilt and an Expert Commissioner on the National Inquiry into Play.”

Casey Bailey is a writer, performer and educator from Birmingham. He was the Poet Laureate of Birmingham 2020-2022 and lives with, researches and writes about ADHD.

Zoe Littlewood is a proud dyslexic on a mission to bring awareness and understanding to dyslexia, she believes that by having open conversations and sharing our stories, we can all develop and grow together, through her initiative the Dylexic Movement.

Who needs to be here?

If you're passionate about education policy and goverance, part of your schools' Senior Management Team (SMT), in an leadership role and want to make an impact, an early career teacher needing to get to grips with the fundamentals of inclusive education or just want to immerse yourself in some invaluable networking, you need to secure your place NOW! The event also welcomes parents raising neurodiverse kids who are keen to find solutions and practical information about the SEND system.

'For Black Families, Neurodivergence Means Challenges - and Endless Opportunities To Refine Parenting" A. Rochaun Meadows-Fernandez, 2022.

What are you waiting for?

Let's come together as a community to support and uplift each other and nurture new connections which can help us in our work or daily lives. Whether you're a parent, caregiver, educator, neurodivergent specialist school leader, teacher, or simply interested in learning more, this event is for you. See you there!

Ricardo P Lloyd, It Takes A Village co-host is a British actor, presenter & writer. His critically acclaimed BBC Radio 4 documentary, “My Name Is Ricardo P Lloyd,” explores the identity of black British actors, reflecting his deep commitment to advocating for marginalized voices. He passionately addresses issues such as school exclusion and champions equality.

www.ricardoplloyd.com(PHOTO">span>(PHOTO CREDIT) Julia Buchalska

Laura Henry-Allain, MBE

Zoe Littlewood.

Casey Bailey.

Suzy Rowland