Our experts once ran schools. Now they work for you.
A membership for parents of neurodivergent young people. Former head teachers, senior SENCOs and specialists — all of them neurodivergent themselves — who will explain what's happening, tell you whether your child's support is good enough, and negotiate on your behalf when it isn't.
Which of these sounds like you?
My child isn't going to school
Mornings have become unbearable. Maybe they haven't been in for weeks. The letters have started arriving and you're running out of things to try. Start here.
We've just had a diagnosis
Autism, Pathological Demand Avoidance, ADHD, DCD or all of the above. You've got a report and a lot of new words, and no idea what any of it means for Monday morning. Start here.
I don't think the support is right
There's an Education, Health and Care Plan, your child is on SEN Support or you have been told "support in place". On paper it sounds like help. But you're not convinced — and you can't tell whether you're being fobbed off or being unreasonable. Start here.
How the NeuroUniverse method works
We talk
Thirty minutes with me, free. You tell me your child's challenges and strengths, how school is going, and what their special interests are.
2. You get a plan
If you go ahead with a membership I email you the plan. What to do, in what order, what to ask for and who to ask it of.
3. We don't disappear
When you need a specialist, I bring in the right one. When you don't, I'll tell you that too.
Why our approach works
NeuroUniverse was started by Jessie Hewitson. Jessie writes the SEND agony aunt column for The Times and The Sunday Times, and she wrote the best-selling Autism: How to Raise a Happy Autistic Child and ADHD: How to Raise a Happy ADHD Child. She was diagnosed autistic and ADHD in later life and has dedicated the past decade of her career to increasing understanding and making the world a happier and kinder place to neurodivergent people.
The specialists we work with are senior neurodivergent people in education. Former head teachers, SENCos with decades in the system and who sit on SEND Panels. People who know exactly what needs to be said, and what will move things along.
They are also, every one of them, neurodivergent. They have been the child in the school struggling as well as the adult negotiating on behalf of their family.
What it costs, honestly
Getting started — £14.95 a month. A thirty-minute call with me, a plan written down afterwards, a fifteen-minute check-in every three months, and access to our specialists at member rates.
In the thick of it — £50 a month. Everything above, but your check-in becomes a full forty-five minutes, and you can email me whenever you need to. We'll read your documents — draft Education, Health and Care Plans, reports, the email from the head — and tell you what they mean and what to say back.
Both cancel any time.
If your plan needs a specialist, you pay them separately, at member rates. Part of my job is telling you honestly whether you need one yet. Sometimes the answer is not yet. See exactly what you get for your money.
Why Jessie started NeuroUniverse…
Parents started finding her. Every week someone would write or ring, usually at the end of their tether. She helped as much as she could, but it became clear they needed more than a reply could carry.
It was also clear that nobody was coordinating the support and care. School, home, sleep, the health appointments, the paperwork — so the parent ends up doing that job too, on top of everything else, with no training and not much sleep.
That's what NeuroUniverse is for.
Jessie and Alex at a party in the early 1980s
Jessie didn’t do it on her own. Alex Ardizzone is our director of operations. She ran projects in companies a great deal bigger than this one, which is why nothing and nobody gets dropped. Alex and Jessie have been best friends since childhood (picture of us both back in the day above) and are both parents of fantastic neurodivergent young people.
Behind them is a crack squad of specialists: former head teachers, senior SENCOs, talented mentors. Neurodivergent people who work with neurodivergent young people every day and passionately care about getting their support right.
Come with your problems, leave with a plan.
“Your specialist’s advice was absolutely bang on — realistic, practical, and delivered with real empathy. Hannah even drafted a letter for us to send to school, which made a huge difference. We came away not just feeling understood, but with a clear plan.”
