EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus are parent education and training programmes designed by the UK National Autistic Society in 1997 and 2003, having been delivered to more than 27,000 families in 14 countries. These group-based programmes aim to (1) support parents immediately after diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, (2) empower parents,…

International research, while mostly conducted in high-income countries, repeatedly states that parents of premature infants have increased needs and require additional information and varied support channels after the infant's initial discharge from hospital. However, the perceived self-reported needs of parents concerned with the caregiving of…

A narrative therapeutic group intervention, Tree of Life, was carried out with groups of ethnic minority parents of children with special educational needs and/or disability (SEND) in a mainstream primary school. A participatory research approach was used, involving collaboration with the group of parents and involvement of a parent co-researcher.…

This article describes how adults learn to self-manage chronic bodily symptoms, a complex and costly health problem. It proposes a theory of learning for an innovative, research-informed intervention, The BodyMind Approach® (TBMA) aimed at developing confidence, competence, skills, and knowledge and understanding for self-management for people…

This research review provides a synthesis of articles that analyse the impact of the educational system on families with special needs children and the potential ways that these families can be empowered and equipped. The articles selected focus on research participants and schools found in North America and Great Britain, in order to give the…

This report is about learning and older people. In the UK, one person in three is over 50, and the numbers are rising. People are living longer, and while some of these years are healthy active retirement, some are spent in poor health. In both cases, learning can make a major contribution both to the well-being of older people, and their…

Good Vibrations is a charity that runs gamelan projects with offenders in prison and on probation. A recent Birmingham City University study investigating the short-, medium- and long-term impact of the project found that participation in a Good Vibrations project acted as a catalyst for positive change. The research found that not only did…

This paper presents data collected in individual case studies that aimed to investigate children and their families who succeeded against the usual "odds" of disadvantage. Funded as an extension of EPPE 3-11 by the Cabinet Office for the Equalities Review, the study focused particularly closely upon the performance of disadvantaged…

Foundation degrees have been developed in the UK as a means of meeting the learning needs of paraprofessionals in health and social care and the services within which they work in a cost-effective fashion. Workplace learning is an intrinsic component to these degrees. Taking a socio-cultural perspective, this paper examines how the students'…

Advanced clinical practice roles are now an integral feature of many healthcare services and have been adopted in a diversity of areas. However, mentoring of these roles is not well documented in the literature and formal mechanisms of support are limited. An action learning set (ALS) was developed to provide support for consultants currently in…

This research paper shows the ways in which survivors of domestic abuse can move on with their lives and take action to prevent their re-victimisation by returning to education. The primary aim was to explore the role of education as an agent of change, effecting positive and empowering changes to survivors' lives, thereby enhancing their life…