Reports Part of series: Researching additional support needs/special educational needs & disabilities: Â鶹ÒùÔº Small Grants Fund research reports
Co-designing ASN/SEND support in South Belfast
This study aimed to support the Market community in South Belfast, a historically underserved area ranked among the 10 per cent most deprived in Northern Ireland, in advancing its locally expressed ambition to become more inclusive and responsive to the needs of all children, particularly those with additional support needs/special educational needs and disabilities (ASN/SEND) and their families.
Key findings include:
SEND provision available to the Market and wider South Belfast area is active but unevenly coordinated.
Participants identified barriers relating to delayed intervention, fragmented systems and limited specialist provision.
Schools and community organisations were increasingly compensating for gaps in statutory support, while families relied heavily on sustained parental advocacy to navigate services.
Implications for policy and practice include:
Strengthen multiagency collaboration between schools, statutory services and community organisations.
Develop more transparent and timely assessment and support pathways that do not depend on sustained parental initiation and follow-up.
Improve accessibility and signposting to support pathways.
Invest in earlier intervention and neurodiversity-informed practice within mainstream settings.
Provide sustained investment in trusted community organisations as integral partners within local SEND provision.
Research Fellow at Queen's University Belfast
Dr Stephanie Maguire is a Community Research Fellow on the SUMIT (Substance Use and Mental Health Interventions using Digital Technology) project at Queen’s Communities and Place (QCAP). She also works across the Education, Skills and Inclusive...
Senior Researcher at Queen's University Belfast
Dr Gareth Robinson is a Senior Researcher and Engaged Research Lead for Education, Skills and Inclusive Innovation at Queen’s Communities and Place. His work examines the relationship between working-class communities, education and urban...
Research Assistant at Queen's University Belfast
Adaiah Hudgins-Lopez is a writer, dancer, and PhD Social Anthropology candidate at Trinity College, University of Cambridge. She is a two-time recipient of the Gates Cambridge Scholarship.