Our Mission
At Inclusive Matters we believe every child and young person deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential. By empowering professionals and parents/carers with the knowledge tools and confidence to understand and meet the needs of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), we help create inclusive environments where every learner can thrive.
Get in touch today to see how we can support you to make a real difference.
| Strategic SEND support | Review of SEND provision, policies and procedures with follow up support and coaching available. |
| Staff Training and CPD | Whole school and targeted, face-to-face and online training available to support with inclusive teaching, understanding neurodiversity, positive behaviour support, inclusive curriculum development, preparation for adulthood and attendance |
| EHCP support | Guidance and support for high-quality EHC needs assessments and annual reviews. |
| SENCO Coaching & Mentoring | One-to-one or small group coaching for SENCOs (especially early-career or new-in-role SENCOs). |
| Parent & Pupil Engagement | Support with parent workshops and forums to develop collaborative working Support with developing systems to meaningfully include the voice of SEND learners in provision planning |
| Training Workshops | Positive behaviour support; understanding the school curriculum and SEND provision. |
| Support and Guidance | Drop in sessions and group and individual support to provide practical guidance and support, and empower families with the knowledge and confidence to advocate for their child. |
| Support with SEND components od ITT programmes | support with embedding high-quality SEND training within ITT programmes to ensure trainee teachers are equipped with the skills and knowledge to create inclusive classrooms and support learners with SEND. |
| Support and Guidance | Drop in sessions and group and individual support to provide practical guidance and support, and empower families with the knowledge and confidence to advocate for their child. |
Our Staff
Maxine Ursell
Founder & SEND Consultant
As one of the founders of Inclusive Matters, I am dedicated to supporting settings, professionals and parents to create truly inclusive environments where all children and young people can thrive.
I believe that inclusion isn't just a policy—it’s a practice built on confidence, understanding, and the right tools. With over 25 years of experience in education, I have served as a teacher and senior leader
in both mainstream and specialist SEND schools. As a qualified teacher, SENCO, and Team Teach trainer my career has been shaped by balancing effective classroom practice with a responsibility to advocate for all. I also hold a certificate in the Theory and Practice of Nurture Groups from Nurture UK.
Throughout my journey in school leadership, I saw firsthand the challenges that both educators and families face when navigating the complexities of SEND provision. I established Inclusive Matters to bridge that gap.
My mission is to empower schools with the strategies they need to support pupils in their learning and to provide expert guidance on understanding and supporting behaviour that challenges, drawing on trauma informed and neuro-affirming practices.
Whether I am coaching a SENCO, training a staff team, or guiding a family through the EHCP process, my approach is always the same: practical, evidence-based, and deeply rooted in the belief that every child deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Janine Rivers
Founder & Send Consultant
I am one of the founders of Inclusive Matters, dedicated to ensuring there is no “one size fits all” approach to education. I believe every child and young person, regardless of need, background or nationality, deserves the opportunity to succeed.
With over 15 years’ experience across mainstream secondary and specialist settings, I am a qualified teacher, SENCO and Team Teach trainer. My work is grounded in evidence-based research and informed by extensive experience in relational, attachment aware and trauma informed practice.
Through Inclusive Matters, I collaborate with schools, families and professionals to strengthen inclusive practice, remove barriers for learners with SEND, and create supportive, solution-focused pathways throughout education. I provide practical guidance, coaching and training that supports meaningful progress, including the small but significant steps that matter most.
I am passionate about positive behaviour support, supporting attendance for pupils with SEND and empowering young people to build confidence, independence and wellbeing, enabling them to thrive both academically and personally.
"The process of working with Inclusive Matters, and specifically Maxine has been professional and seemless."
We contacted Maxine at Inclusive Matters as their mission and values aligns well with ours, in believing
that all children deserve the opportunities to be successful. At Somercotes Infant School, we aim to work
with children and families to be successful in the diverse world, and a fresh set of specialist eyes on our
school provision can never be a bad thing!
The process of working with Inclusive Matters, and specifically Maxine has been professional and
seemless. We initially met and toured the school, with Maxine’s knowledge and awareness being clear.
We discussed the wide range of individual needs in our school, the inclusive practises that we have, and
the areas where Inclusive Matters could continue to ‘add value’. It was fulfilling to hear all of the positive
feedback from Maxine, and to be able to share these with the staff team.
Maxine then returned to our school and spent time working with the children. Again her knowledge and
understanding of the children was evident, with the staff team all appreciating the opportunity to work
with Maxine on an applied basis. Sometimes consultants in education can be so far from the classroom
that they forget the reason that we are all here. The vision and values. The children. This is not the case
with Maxine. Her recent experience at the East Midlands SEND Training Hub translates through her work
at Inclusive Matters.
We look forward to continuing to work with Maxine, upskilling our staff, empowering all adults,
supporting children, and continuing to work with children and families to be successful in our diverse
world.
Ben Rowland
Headteacher, Somercotes Infant & Nursery School
"She was brilliant with the children, interacting with them and showing care and concern to them all."
Maxine visited our setting to offer advice about a child who displays sensory, behavioural and
regulation issues. She was very reassuring and restored confidence that we are helping the child to
succeed and that we are able to meet their needs, steering us in the right direction of how best to
help them further.
She was brilliant with the children, interacting with them and showing care and concern to them all.
The children evidently felt comfortable in her presence and responded well to her being in the
setting.
Maxine spent time observing the child, and how they responded to the different activities and to the
other children in the setting, and quickly identified strategies we could use to calm the child and help
them to self-regulate. She provided us with positive comments about the overall atmosphere and
practical set-up of the setting, and suggested some ideas for improvements that would benefit the
child.
After visiting the setting, Maxine produced a clear, detailed report that contained strategies to
implement, suggestions for resources that may help the child, and further reading to enable us to
improve our knowledge within this area.
We highly recommend Maxine. She is clearly very knowledgeable, has some fantastic ideas, and we
felt very at ease and confident having her in the setting.
Michelle Tyreman
Childminder