Meet The Team

Holly is a Specialist Independent Occupational Therapist (BSc Hons - York St John University) earning distinctions in all practice areas. Holly is an Advanced Sensory Integration Practitioner (Sensory Integration Education Level 4 - PGcert through University of Ulster). Holly holds over 15 years experience of working in residential and school settings with neurodivergent children and adults.

Holly completes assessments and report writing and working with children who experience childhood trauma, autistic children, ADHD or PDA children. Holly has knowledge in masking/camouflaging and fawning.  Holly works with children who may be perceived to be some of the most 'complex' children in terms of engagement and places all her efforts into building a trusting, predictable and reliable therapeutic relationship in order for them to comfortably access therapeutic support whilst feeling safe. Holly is a keen believer in utilising play and child led approaches, whilst entwining meaningful activity and the child's interests in order to guide assessment and therapy practice. Holly works with clients from infant age up to aged 25.

As well as advanced sensory integration therapy practice, Holly has further training and expertise in the following:

• Autism
• ADHD
• PDA
• EOTAS
• Selective/situational mutism
• Expert witness report writing and tribunal attendance trained 
• Sensory integration and infant and toddler sleep, feeding and self regulation 
• Interoception the 8th sense - assessment, therapy support, inclusive of further training in toileting, eating and non speaking clients
• Neurodiversity affirming therapy practice
• Goal setting including GAS goals
• MOHOST/SCOPE
• Trained in Assessment of motor process skills 
• Apple accredited student supervisor
• First aid trained 
• Feeding support - SOS feeding therapy training, infant feeding and regulation and assessment and treatment from a sensory integration perspective, responsive feeding therapy approach, 
• Sleep from a sensory integration perspective including infant sleep and regulation
• Sensory environments - creating sensory spaces including sensory room design
• Emotional regulation
• Motor skills - Fine and gross

Holly works in schools, children's homes and our clinic settings completing assessments and delivering therapy support within Yorkshire, Cornwall, Devon and surrounding regions. Holly is HCPC registered and is a member of the Royal College of Occupational Therapy (RCOT) and children young people and families RCOT specialist section, Royal college of occupational therapy independent practice specialist section, Sensory integration education member, STAR institute member, and a member of World Federation of Occupational Therapy.

Holly has presented and guest lectured at Universities both undergraduate and masters level occupational therapy programs. 

and has presented at SEND conferences.

 "I qualified as an Occupational Therapist in 2006. I have worked in a variety of settings since I left university, including, Learning Disability services,  acute services, rheumatology, orthopaedics. I always knew I wanted to work with Children and young people and this was confirmed when I commenced my paediatric rotation, I stayed on and obtained a more senior position working in the paediatric health OT team. I enjoyed completing standardised and non standardised assessments with children and young people  both at home and in school, working with parents/carers and education staff, providing groupwork and 1:1 therapy intervention. 

Later I moved to social services, where I obtained further skills around specialist equipment, major and minor adaptations. Again working with families to make homes more accessible and ‘work’ better for the needs of the child or young person. 

I have always enjoyed working with Children and Young people and  keen to understand and consider where behaviours and actions stem from. I have completed a postgraduate certification in Sensory Integration with SI Education through Sheffield Hallam (module 3 SI practitioner) and this has deepened my understanding of behaviour as a communication tool and how Occupational Therapy can help and support people to participate in activities that mean the most to them. I am currently completing module 4 in sensory integration to become an advanced practitioner. 

When I am not working, I enjoy spending time with my family and our dog, going to the beach, woodland walks, baking, attempting DIY, trying to be creative, and traveling. 

What I enjoy most about being an OT is: I love that as OT’s we can disguise therapeutic support into play... we can make really huge changes from a relatively small intervention. We see people as a whole and understand what is most important to them"

Shelley works in the Doncaster area and provides assessment report services both in clinic and within schools and homes. Shelley provides sensory integration therapy and services within our Doncaster clinic. 

Shelley has experience/training in the following:

• Extensive paediatrics experience 
• Expert witness report writing and tribunal attendance trained 
• Autism
• Learning differences
• Sensory integration practitioner (module 3 SI network)
• Sensory assessment report writing
• Supporting schools/school contracts
• Experience of Children's physical health needs
• Aids and equipment and minor and major environmental adaptations, experience including legislation such as DFG's
•  Support for educational health and care plans and reviews
• Moving and handling
• Participation in safeguarding and child in need process 
•  Specialist interest in learning disabilities, neurodiversity and sensory integration/processing difficulties 
• Working with children with trauma/attachment needs
• Assessment and treatment for children in therapeutic foster care

 Mel is a HCPC-qualified Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, earning a Bachelor's degree with honours in 2006. Since then, she has worked in a wide range of clinical settings within the NHS, including:

• Mainstream and Specialist Schools
• Child Development Centre/Preschool Complex Needs
• Adult Learning Disability Services
• Mental Health Inpatient Services
• CAMHS

This broad experience has allowed Mel to develop a deep understanding of communication and interaction skills in autistic individuals, Gestalt Language Processors, and people with speech and language differences, learning differences/disabilities, ADHD, hearing impairments, situational mutism, trauma and attachment needs, and mental health conditions.

Mel holds a postgraduate qualification in Dysphagia Management and has 10 years of experience assessing eating, drinking, and swallowing skills in adults and children. This includes individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions, learning disabilities, dementia, degenerative conditions, Cerebral Palsy, and mental health needs. More recently, she has worked in eating disorders and ARFID services, where personalised support and therapeutic mealtimes are essential.

Mel is a registered member of the following professional bodies:

• Royal College of Speech and Language Therapy (RCSLT)
• Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
• Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
• Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice (ASLTIP)

In addition to her degree, Mel has completed extensive further training, including:

• Intensive Interaction
• Makaton and British Sign Language
• Gestalt Language Processing
• Alternative and Augmentative Communication Systems
• Attention Autism and Curiosity Programme
• SCERTS
• Selective Mutism
• Counselling Skills
• Sensory Processing
• SEMH, Trauma, and Attachment

Mel has designed and delivered training and workshops for parents, schools, students, and medical staff, covering a wide range of speech and language therapy areas. She has won a national award for innovative practice and completed training with the Anna Freud Centre to deliver autism training to mental health services.

Mel is ADOS and ADI-R trained and has experience in supporting an autism diagnosis for both adults and young people, as part of a multi-agency team.

She is highly skilled in completing personalised functional communication assessments and EHCP/Annual Review assessments and reports. Mel believes assessments should always consider the impact of environment, arousal levels, motivation, sensory needs, and preferred interests. She strongly advocates for recognising and responding to communicative behaviours, as these can be key for many children. Small changes in how we support communication can significantly affect a child’s ability to develop, flourish, and access education to reach their potential.

Mel takes a neurodiversity-affirming approach when producing communication plans, ensuring they meet the child's individual needs. She delivers therapy aimed at achieving meaningful and achievable outcomes. Mel is passionate about identifying the best Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) systems for individuals, whether paper-based or powered aids, with the ethos that non-speaking does not mean having nothing to say. She believes a total communication approach is essential to maximising opportunities and that interaction should be child-led, play-based, and, above all, fun.

As a freelance instructor and tutor, Roger has worked with neurodivergent children and adults for 10+ years. As a working professional musician, fitness instructor and national standards cycling instructor he has delivered a wide variety of activity sessions to both groups and 1:1 basis within both home/residential and school settings. 

• 1:1 direct sensory sessions via oversight from Occupational Therapist
• 1:1 guitar lessons for children - in school and home
• 1:1 music sessions and group music sessions - such as call and response, make your own musical instrument, music recording, sensory music
• Rebound therapy support (spotter)
• DBS certified - enhanced. Children's and adults work force
• Safeguarding children and adults certified

  Sarah has experience of working in the accounts industry for over 35 years ranging from SME's to large internationally recognised companies.

"Out of all my previous jobs, my favourite was working for a Doncaster based SMT business. I had the pleasure to see them grow from a small home-based company into an internationally recognised business. The hands-on approach meant you saw every aspect of the business from start to finish.

When not at work I enjoy travelling with my husband in our converted camper van 'Doris'. We have plans to take her to the Scandinavian arctic circle. As for keeping fit, my gorgeous 2 year old grandson sees to that."