I am 17 years old and I live in Wendover with my family. I am currently attending College on the pathway to progression course. I am diagnosed as Autistic and have ADHD, I also have sensory processing disorder and a duplication of chromosome 22q.11.21.

My plans for the future include working in either the NHS or at a theme park as well as to live independently. My hobbies and interests include watching F1, playing video games, going for long walks in the countryside and listening to music.

I started SOfS back in May 2023, I joined because I wanted to make friends, but I stayed because I liked being a part of something important and having my voice heard. During my time at SOfS I have been involved in a Youth Voice matters Summit in Birmingham, a Youth Summit at the waterside theatre (where I undertook my young inspector role,) and several interviews to hire employees to work with both us and the Aylesbury council. My favourite thing about Shout Out for Send is the different projects I’m a part of, seeing new places, learning I’m not alone, meeting the SEND community and finding more opportunities in life.

It is Important to listen to young people because they know what modern life is like for the youth today and have some fresh ideas about what can be done. I feel like SOfS is a good opportunity for people with SEND to interact with others in the community and make positive change happen. One thing I would like to campaign about is safeguarding for SEN people and support for any anxieties or problems they may have without singling them out negatively and eliminating any negative loopholes in any SEN support system.

My name is Dawn. My pronouns are She/They, and I have diagnosed autism. I am currently studying editing, screen craft animation at The London Screen Academy. I joined Shout Out for SEND about a year ago after being told about it by a fellow member and friend of mine. I joined out of a desire to find a community of like-minded people and to ultimately help others and stop them from having the negative experiences that I and other people with SEND had to deal with.

Outside of Shout Out for SEND I am a passionate creative that has always loved writing and dabble in art. Beyond that I often like to pass the time by just scrolling through YouTube, playing video games, watching film and tv series, and going on walks around my local area.

My goals for life include expanding on my creative potential to share my art, story’s, characters and ideas with others and to push the world to be more caring, understanding, accepting, and loving; to create a world where people can just exist as they please and be happy.

My respect for Shout Out for SEND is high, as it too pushes to achieve just that. It’s use of the young to push for change is fundamental; a world that isn’t made for the new generation is a world that will one day be made for no one.

My name is Ishaan, I was diagnosed about two years ago as autistic, though I do not like the term’s diagnosis or disorder, as it medicalises it as a condition rather than being a way of thinking and seeing the world. Being Autistic comes with both benefits and challenges. For example, I need to spend a little more time thinking about things, but when I do think of something, it is usually new and innovative. I would like to become a teacher that specialises in SEND so that I can help other facing these challenges.

I joined Shout out for SEND, in September 2025, in the hopes of creating greater awareness of what being neurodiverse means. I hope that this awareness will help make people kinder and more understanding to people with SEND – I feel sometimes people can be cruel in their comments.

Hi, my name is Louise. For my job, I currently deliver autism training to professionals as well as working on a research study. Outside of this, I run an online platform that reaches millions of autistic people every month, where I campaign for a world that works for neurodivergent people, creating accessible neuro-affirming resources, amplifying lived experiences, and pushing for systemic change. Most recently, myself and other autistic creators ran a campaign which led to over 200 autistic people sharing their perspectives and experiences to feed into a review of The Autism Act, a law which aims to support the rights of autistic people.

I love shopping, coffee and seeing my friends.

I joined Shout Out for SEND around four years ago because I felt frustrated about our experiences as SEND young people and felt not listened to. During my time, I have spoken at conferences, attended lots of meetings, fed back to the council, and created videos on key experiences. In the future, I would like to hear more about the difference that our feedback as young people is making, as from my perspective, it doesn’t always feel like there is enough meaningful change. I would like to campaign for all schools to receive regular, lived experience led training on autism.

My name is Pippa. I’m 19 and currently studying SEND law at an alternative provision post-16 setting.

I joined Shout Out for SEND in 2023 and also am a part of Youth Voice Exec Committee (our sister group). My favourite thing I’ve done with SOfS was the speech I gave to 200 people about the differences inclusion can make to a SEND child or young person in school. I am autistic and have FND (functional neurological disorder) which is a condition where my brain and nerves don’t communicate effectively. This causes tics and itself was caused by my secondary school failing to support me effectively and discriminating against me for 5 years.

This has made me super passionate about making changes in the SEND system so that no one else has to go through the same thing or at the very least, they don’t have to go through it alone. So I hope to have a job making changes like the ones I have made with Shout Out for SEND in the future.

“Hi! My name is Serena and I’m 19 years old. I’m autistic and have ADHD, which helps me be creative and have lots of good ideas!. I want to work in something to do with linguistics. I’m very interested in languages and how they shape our world beyond verbal communication. I am good at writing. One of my passions is charity work and advisory panels, and I’m involved in lots of other interesting projects out of Shout-Out For SEND

I joined SOfS because I want to help other people like me and have the chance to make life easier for neurodivergent people. I have been a rep since early 2023. I like how SOfS has a very chilled atmosphere, and everyone there is really nice and welcoming. It’s really important to listen to young people, especially when making policies that directly affect us, because we need to have input to make these things better. This just doesn’t go for young people. Lots of underrepresented minority groups should be listened to make the world more inclusive and accessible. The one thing I’d like to campaign on with SOfS is working with mainstream schools to make things easier for people with SEND and looking at how to improve accessibility in outside spaces, so everyone can access nature and the benefits it brings”