A Doncaster parent has turned his experience of navigating support and education information into an online resource platform for other families.

Scott Allen created Awareverse to bring together plain-English information, practical tools, books and apps for neurodivergent people and their families.

He says the idea grew from the difficulty of finding understandable information in one place while dealing with the demands of everyday family life.

Making information easier to find

The website includes sections on school support, Education, Health and Care Plans, communication, everyday skills and home education. It also provides free information and downloadable resources.

Its published books are sold separately, while the app collection contains projects at different stages of development and release. The presence of a listing should not be taken to mean every app is available on every device.

Allen's aim is to organise information around practical situations, such as preparing for school conversations, understanding reports or planning a daily routine, rather than expecting families to know the system's terminology first.

Support before a diagnostic label

One of the messages in the supplied press pack is that families should be able to discuss identified educational needs without waiting for every assessment to be completed.

Allen asks: “Why are we waiting for a diagnosis before helping a child whose needs we can already see?”

In a 2023 answer to Parliament, the Department for Education said SEN support should be put in place when needs are identified, without waiting for a medical assessment or diagnosis.

Current government guidance advises parents with concerns about special educational needs to speak to their child's school or nursery SEN co-ordinator.

Learning alongside the project

Allen is also studying towards an Open degree with the Open University. He describes his return to education as part of the experience that informs his work on accessible resources.

Awareverse is an independently developed resource platform, not a replacement for professional educational, medical or legal advice. This feature reports the founder's work and motivation; it is not an assessment of the effectiveness of its tools.

Readers can explore the free resources and check individual product information at awareverse.co.uk.