Neurodiversity SPARK

20/11/2025

Sometimes the bravest thing you can do is try again, on your own terms, in a space designed with you in mind.

For so many neurodivergent adults, returning to education feels like stepping back into a building that once closed its doors on you.

But what if that door opened differently this time?

What if the space was calmer… the people understood overwhelm… and support was actually built into the room?

We’re proud to share that Neurodiversity Spark will be partnering with Belfast Metropolitan College once again, delivering daily, trauma-informed support throughout their Digital Skills for Life and Work programme, for neurodivergent adults.

This course is for adults who want to build digital confidence: word processing, emails, spreadsheets, presentations, AI, cyber security……

…..but need a safe way to re-enter learning after burnout, anxiety, or difficult past experiences.

And Spark will be there every day to help with:
💜Navigating overwhelm and regulation
💜 Building confidence at a pace that works for you
💜 Strengths discovery through Strengthscope
💜 Gentle, lived-experience guidance in the classroom

Because learning should never cost you your wellbeing.

🎓 24 Nov – 12 Dec 2025
📍 Belfast Met, E3 Campus
💷 Free
👉 Apply or learn more: https://lnkd.in/eFK7NEmG

17/11/2025

A new opportunity for neurodivergent adults who need a safe way back into learning 🧠🎓

Neurodiversity Spark will be partnering with Belfast Met to deliver daily, trauma-informed support throughout their (Neuro-Diverse) Digital Skills for Life & Work programme.

For many adults, education has been a painful place. This course is built differently, and Spark’s role is to ensure learners feel psychologically safe, supported in moments of overwhelm, and able to re-engage without fear or judgement.🫶🏻

"We want to learn in the same environments as everyone else, with dignity, pride, and purpose.....walking the same institutional corridors, but on our own terms."🎓

We will help with:
💛 Overwhelm, anxiety & regulation
💛 Building confidence in a safe, ND-friendly space
💛 Strengths discovery through Strengthscope
💛 Navigating the classroom with lived-experience support

If this resonates with you or someone you know, please share.
Everyone deserves a place to learn without fear.


Over three weeks, you’ll gain hands-on experience with:
💻 Word processing and email management
📊 Spreadsheets and presentations
🤖 AI and cyber security
🏅 OCN Level 2 in Digital Skills for Work and Life
💬 Plus, soft skills to help you thrive in work or education

You’ll learn at your own pace, with extra mentoring and guidance to help you succeed.

📍 Belfast Met, Springvale Campus
🗓️ 24th November – 12th December 2025
💷 Free

👉 Apply now or learn more https://www.belfastmet.ac.uk/course/p00464-ac/neuro-diverse-digital-skills-for-life-and-work

17/11/2025

Are you an adult with a disability not currently in paid work? We’d like to hear from you.

Ulster University and Disability Action are carrying out confidential research to understand the experiences of disabled adults who aren’t in paid work or self-employment.

We’re especially looking for people living in:
📍 Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon
📍 Fermanagh & Omagh
📍 Mid & East Antrim
📍 Newry, Mourne & Down

Taking part involves a confidential 90-minute interview, which can be done online or in person. You’ll receive a £20 voucher as a thank-you for your time and you’ll have the chance to share your experiences to help shape future employment support in Northern Ireland.

If you’d like to take part or want more information, please email:
📧 EPICFutures@ulster.ac.uk
(or scan the QR code on the flyer below)

12/11/2025

Did you know?
Neurodiversity Spark are officially registered under (SIC) 72200, which means our core business is research and experimental development in social sciences and humanities.

Why does that matter?
Because every solution we deliver, whether it’s workplace neuroinclusion, trauma-informed systems, or advocacy, is grounded in evidence-based research and lived experience. We’re not guessing; we’re building change that lasts.

Our mission?
To make Northern Ireland inclusive by embedding research-led, co-produced practices in every workplace and community system.

👉 Want to learn more about how research drives neuroinclusion? Visit www.neurodiversityspark.com.

05/11/2025

Gary was invited back to Ulster University yesterday to connect with brilliant Year 2 students from the Creative Media module in Coleraine.🎓🧠

Together we explored empathy, boundaries, and the power of advocating through creativity - how understanding ourselves and others shapes the stories we tell and the spaces we build.

It was an inspiring session and a great reminder of what inclusive education looks like in practice: open conversations, creative freedom, and the courage to lead with compassion.

🎓 Huge thanks to Ulster University and Dr Hook for the warm welcome.

27/10/2025

We’re co-chair members of a new project led by academic researchers at Ulster University and the NI Administrative Data Research Centre that explores how ADHD-related data is used across systems.

This project is funded by DARE UK.

Neurodiversity Spark is now recruiting a Public Co-Chair with lived experience of ADHD to share leadership of the Sensitive Evidence Tracking (SET) Working Group.

The role is paid, supported, and designed with accessibility in mind. Around 2–3 hours per month, mostly online.

If you’re passionate about connecting lived experience with research and want to help shape how evidence drives change, we’d love to hear from you.

👉 Apply now through our Expression of Interest Form: https://forms.office.com/e/3VT9kzVhG0

Deadline: Friday, 7 November 2025

19/10/2025

Introducing a new trauma-informed approach to inclusion in Northern Ireland: the NeuroInclusion Social Worker.💜

(We converted the information PDF into an MP4 short video for you all - attached to the post👇)

What is a NeuroInclusion (corporate) Social Worker?

Across workplaces and services, people are recognising that wellbeing and inclusion are complex, often shaped by trauma, late diagnosis, and systems that do not always fit everyone.

It’s a growing new way of helping organisations across Northern Ireland take a preventative approach to wellbeing, inclusion, and safeguarding.

These Social Workers work alongside NeuroInclusion Advocates, combining professional expertise with lived experience. Together, they support early intervention, policy, recruitment, and organisational culture. 😌

You’ll find in it a model designed for real-world settings: practical, reflective, and rooted in lived experience.

If this approach resonates, we would love to hear your thoughts or explore how it might look in your organisation.

🔗https://www.neurodiversityspark.com/neuroinclusion-support-services/

15/10/2025

11/10/2025

Excellent opportunity with a great charity. 💻📲

Disability Action are looking to employ a Marketing Manager.

09/10/2025

We’re hiring........and we’re extending the deadline! 🌟

It’s been a wonderfully busy few weeks at Spark (in the best possible way), so we’re giving applicants a little extra time to apply. Gary wanted to do a wee video and everything, but he didn't even get the chance.

So.... New deadline: Friday 17th October, 5pm
Spark is looking for an Operations and Support Assistant to the CEO (Access to Work NI – Part-time).

This role is all about keeping the wheels turning across our research, training, advocacy, and lived experience work - helping us drive forward neuroinclusion across Northern Ireland.

📍 Belfast (Cathedral Quarter)
🕒 8 hrs/week (flexible)
💷 £12.21/hr
📌 Funded via the Access to Work NI Programme (DfC)
This is an opportunity to be part of a movement that shapes real change from the ground up.

👉 Find out more and apply: https://www.neurodiversityspark.com/careers-at-neurodiversity-spark

08/10/2025

We’re at the 2025 Diversity Mark Annual Summit at Titanic Belfast! ⚡️

We want Northern Ireland to be a place where everyone feels welcome, safe, and included. That’s why we’ve launched our Trauma-Informed Social Worker and Neuroinclusion Advocate twin approach, a new way to support people early, before things reach crisis point.

Come say hello and chat with us about how Spark is helping build workplaces and communities based on empathy, safety, and real inclusion.

With Daria, Spark’s Neuroinclusion Practice Lead, here representing her shared belief in a more inclusive future.

Thanks to Diversity Mark for hosting such an inspiring day.

07/10/2025

🧠New Neurodivergent Support Groups Coming Soon❤️

Today, we took the first step in launching in-person support groups for neurodivergent adults. Gary and Daria had the privilege of observing a session at AWARE NI’s offices in Belfast, and it was truly inspiring.

The warmth, professionalism, and care shown by the AWARE team were wonderful. It has given us even more ambition and energy to establish our own groups, shaped by lived experience and neuro-inclusive values.

Next comes training with AWARE NI. Once complete, we will run our own groups, shaped by lived experience and neuroinclusive practice.

These groups are part of our Neuroinclusive Support Services, which include trauma-informed support from our Neuroinclusion Social Worker and Neuroinclusion Advocates.🚨

We’re building something relational, practical, and grounded in real-world experiences of neurodivergence.

Your voice matters. Help us shape these groups by filling out this short form:

👉 https://forms.office.com/e/zuVXGMqKsP
📍 Learn more about our Neuroinclusion Support Services:
🌐 https://www.neurodiversityspark.com/neuroinclusion-support-services

Let’s build support that truly fits.