NAGALRO ONLINE SPRING CONFERENCE 2025

NEURODIVERGENT CHILDREN

The cost of failing to recognise and respond to the challenges and barriers these children face in the Family Justice System

Monday 10 March 2025, 9.30am – 2.00pm

This conference will take place shortly after the publication of the Family Justice Council’s best practice guidance about neurodiversity in the Family Justice System.  Nagalro’s focus for this conference will be on children - what lies beneath the umbrella term neurodivergence, and what is the best social work practice?  We aim to ensure that delegates are fully aware of the range of neurodivergence and why early diagnostic assessments and appropriate adjustments are key. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach, and lack of awareness and stereotypes around neurodivergence are common. The conference also aims to examine the key intersections of race, culture, gender and disadvantage, and how these can feed into the under recognition and underdiagnosis of neurodivergence - which is particularly relevant for black children, where other societal assumptions about their behaviour persist. 

Chair of the Conference:  Conference Chair and Keynote Speaker:

Caroline Croft, Barrister Coram Chambers - Conference Chair and a founding member of FLANC (Family Law Advice for the Neurodivergent Community).  Caroline will touch on key themes and issues and her contribution to the FJC guidance on neurodiversity in the Family Justice System.

Speakers and presentation titles:

• Dr Tom Grange (Psychologist, PsychD, HCPC - Clin. Psych, & Director of Dr Grange & Associates): ‘Different forms of neurodivergence in children and means of identification’
• Lucy Barnes (Pupil Barrister and Co-Founder/CEO of Lawyers Who Care - care experienced and neurodivergent lawyer): Foster care, adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s) and Neurodivergence.
• Ravi Kaur Mahey (Director and Children Panel Member at Cartwright King Solicitors, neurodivergent lawyer and parent of a neurodivergent child):  Needs not Diagnosis - How to identify, recognise and better understand neurodivergence and what we can do to secure better outcomes for children and adults in the social work and legal system.
• Sarah Langley (Chair of Cafcass Neurodiversity Network):  title TBC 
• Dr Harbrinder Dhillon-Stevens: Understanding neurodivergent children in the social work, clinical and family justice system: What does good practice look like? How race and culture can feed into under recognition and underdiagnosis of neurodivergence in black children.
• Full panel discussion focusing on good practice around neurodivergence for social workers in the family justice system.

 

The Conference will attract 4 CPD hours and be of interest to academics, barristers, solicitors, family court advisers, children’s guardians, independent social workers, local authority social workers, family support workers and mediators, judges, administrators, magistrates, social workers, mental health workers, researchers and IROs.

If you would like to attend, please download the application form here, complete and return to nagalro@nagalro.com.