Sensory Inclusive Schools

Hello, I’m Beth Smithson, Paediatric Occupational Therapist and Advanced Sensory Integration Practitioner.

If you haven’t yet read Dr Lelanie Brewer’s recent article, “Understanding Masking in Neurodivergent Students”, I highly recommend it. It’s prompted powerful conversations across our network.

Reflections from the SIS Network

I host our term-time peer support sessions for the Sensory Inclusive Schools Network. After each session, I write a short reflection because the discussions are thoughtful, honest, and often transformative.

Below are some of the themes that have resonated most recently. You might recognise your own current challenges in one of them. (Click on the heading to go to the full text.)

Communication and Sensory Regulation

“…when communication is limited, sensory distress can often be expressed through behaviour. This might include avoidance, escalation, withdrawal, shutdown, or reduced participation. The behaviour is often the person’s most accessible form of communication in that moment…”

When we shift from managing behaviour to understanding communication, everything changes.

Shifting Perspectives

“People are noticing the sensory load of a space, the pace of the day, the transitions, the noise, the uncertainty, the pressure, and the hidden demands that we often do not even realise we are placing on students. They are asking better questions, not ‘What is wrong with them?’ but ‘What is this situation demanding of them right now?’”

This shift in thinking is at the heart of sensory inclusion.

Rethinking Sensory Circuits

“The question is not ‘Have they done alerting, then organising, then calming?’ The question is ‘What does this student need right now?’”

Structure matters, but responsiveness matters more.

Slow Down to Move Forward

“Here is the approach we are championing in the SIS Network: slow down to move forward. Therapists and school staff need to ask: What do we genuinely have the capacity to do consistently in this classroom with this team right now? Then choose one or two achievable actions, agree on them together, and make them non-negotiable for a few weeks.”

Sustainable change beats ambitious plans that fade after two weeks.

Looking After Yourself

“Co-regulation is not an endless resource. If we are running on empty, stretched, or holding too much stress, our capacity to co-regulate narrows. We may still be kind and skilled, but it becomes harder to stay patient, flexible, and responsive. This is not a personal failing. It is a predictable nervous system response when demand outweighs capacity.”

Supporting staff wellbeing is not separate from sensory inclusion. It is central to it.

Sending Classroom Strategies Home is Not Enough

“Home is not an extension of school. It has different sensory demands, routines, relationships, pressures, and often less capacity. A strategy that works in school may not be realistic at home. Sending home classroom strategies is not enough. What looks simple on paper may carry a different load at home. This is where working together matters.”

Supporting students effectively means collaborating across school and home—understanding each environment’s unique demands and planning together for what’s realistic and sustainable.

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Would you like to join our peer support sessions, access our OT-moderated forum, and work through bite-sized training modules designed to help you take practical action straight away?

Find out more about the Sensory Inclusive Schools Network here.

Best wishes
Beth Smithson
Lead for Sensory Inclusive Schools

If you’re on LinkedIn, I regularly share practical ideas and reflections on creating more sensory-inclusive schools. You’d be very welcome to connect with me there.