Sunfield - publications and publishing services

PUBLICATIONS AND PUBLISHING SERVICES
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The following publications are available from Sunfield. For orders and enquiries please email the 'Publishing & publications dept' using our website enquiry form. Resource publications Books and collections of articles Individual articles categorised as follows: Communication and self-advocacy Curriculum development The Arts Early intervention Families Health Leisure Mainstream support for young people with ASD Professional training Therapies Transition Sunfield briefing sheets (pack)
RESOURCE PUBLICATIONS
	Communication Profile for People with Severe Visual Impairment and Additional Disabilities Includes supporting CD	£10.00 + £2.50 p&p
	This Profile is designed to overcome many of the difficulties encountered when presenting information to professionals about levels of communication in a developmentally young child with severe visual impairment and additional disabilities. It provides a comprehensive description of the individual’s communication skills, and can be used with adults as well as children. Its uniqueness lies in the specific focus upon people with visual impairment and additional disabilities, rather than being an adaptation of instruments primarily designed to target other disability groups.	Download full details and order form

	FASD Resource pack for Early Years practitioners	FREE DOWNLOAD
	Following a year of research, Sunfield has prepared a resource pack for use by Early Years practitioners who have a child in their setting who may be affected by Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). Details of the research project including a full report can be found here. The resource pack itself is available for free download in five parts. See right.	To save files to your own PC, right click on each link and select 'Save Target As...' Front cover Information sheets Strategies Case studies Communication To view files, you will need a pdf reader. To avoid any difficulties, please ensure you have the most up to date version on your pc. You can obtain the latest free copy of Adobe Reader by clicking here

	Sunfield Student Risk Assessment	£5.00 + £2.50 p&p
	The Sunfield Student Risk Assessment (SSRA) is a pioneering and innovative risk assessment for use in the care and education of children and young people with special educational needs. The concept of a comprehensive risk assessment format began to be developed at Sunfield in 2004, the year which saw the introduction of the Children Act (England and Wales). However, what makes the SSRA stand out from others of its kind is that it incorporates within its framework the five outcomes for children from the Every Child Matters (Department for Education and Skills, 2004) initiative: ‘Be healthy’, ‘Stay safe’, ‘Enjoy and achieve’, ‘Make a positive contribution’ and ‘Achieve economic wellbeing’.	Download full details and order form

	Voice for Choice: Listening to the needs of young people with mental health and severe learning disabilities (Pack includes CD)	£15.00 + £2.50 p&p
	Up to 40% of all children and young people with learning disabilities experience mental health difficulties and rely on the support of professionals and parents to access a range of therapeutic interventions. However, the need to enable children and young people to make choices with regard to their care and support is crucial to their self-esteem. The Sunfield Voice for Choice project (funded by BBC Children In Need) explored ways in which young people with learning disabilities and mental health problems could be supported and facilitated to make informed choices about their types of treatment and therapeutic interventions. The resulting pack includes materials that were designed and trialled with young people to enable them to participate and have choice over decisions about the support they receive for mental health difficulties and their daily care. The Voice for Choice toolkit consists of: CD-Rom of resource templates, which can be individualised using Widgit Software; guidelines on the use of resources; examples of how resources can be personalised.	Download full details and order form
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BOOKS AND COLLECTIONS OF ARTICLES
	New Horizons in Special Education Evidence-Based Practice in Action	£20.00 + £2.50 p&p
	Edited by Barry Carpenter and Jo Egerton Foreword by Roy McConkey While ideally placed to carry out ‘real world’ research, practitioners often need support in carrying out setting-based inquiry. This book discusses the role of practitioners as researchers, addresses the development of a research culture within a special school and presents research projects carried out within a school for young people with severe and complex learning disabilities.	Download full details and order form
COMMENT "This book is an inspiration, for both the breadth and depth of its practitioner-led investigations into pedagogies for young people with severe and complex learning disabilities (severe autistic spectrum disorders in particular), and for the example it offers of sustained and authoritative school-based research." Lesley Saunders, Visiting Professor, Institute of Education, University of London

	Moving with Research Evidence-Based Practice in Sherborne Developmental Movement	£17.50 + £2.50 p&p
	Edited by Elizabeth Marsden & Jo Egerton Foreword by Melanie Peter Veronica Sherborne developed a unique way of engaging children and young people with severe learning difficulties in interactive learning which became known as the Sherborne Developmental Movement (SDM). Moving with Research presents evidence of the effects and benefits of SDM and is based on research carried out in both the UK and Europe by educationalists, therapists and health professionals.	Download full details and order form

	Early Childhood Intervention - International Perspectives, National Initiatives and Regional Practice	£15.00 + £2.50 p&p
	Edited by Barry Carpenter and Jo Egerton Foreword by Michael Guralnick - Chair, International Society on Early Intervention A series of themed seminars were convened within the West Midlands region to promote a common understanding of what is meant by Early Childhood Intervention within international, national and regional contexts. These seminars have been presented as a digest published by West Midlands SEN Regional Partnership and Sunfield Professional Development Centre. The Digest shares essential information about major trends in development in European and international contexts, and includes papers by speakers which relate to their seminar.	Download full details and order form
COMMENT "This book is extremely timely. It provides a coherent, well-knit overview of policy, service development and practice that has, as a fundamental goal, the improvement of the life chances of very young children with a range of special needs and support for their families." Professor Sheila Wolfendale, formerly of University of East London, reviewed in the British Journal of Special Education

	Communicating through Movement: Sherborne Developmental Movement – towards a broadening perspective	£14.99 + £2.50 p&p
	Author: Cyndi Hill Published by Sunfield, Clent Cyndi Hill is an experienced practitioner and trainer with an extensive knowledge of the work of Veronica Sherborne. In Communicating through Movement, she explores and considers the evolving theory which underpins the practice and implementation of the Sherborne Developmental Movement, a unique way of engaging children and young people with severe learning difficulties in interactive learning.	Download full details and order form
COMMENT "…a useful handbook to accompany understanding of a holistic approach that has continuing relevance across the educational in mainstream as well as specialist provision." Dr Melanie Peter, Anglia Ruskin University, reviewed in the British Journal of Special Education

	Talking to Families; Listening to Families	£8.50 incl postage
	Edited by Barry Carpenter OBE With foreword by Dr. Philippa Russell CBE (Special Policy Adviser on Disability – National Children’s Bureau) A collection of articles illustrating the development of Family Services and family focused models of practice.	Download full details and order form

	Designing Living and Learning Environments for Children with Autism	£4.00 incl p&p
	Preface by Dame Stephanie Shirley Demonstrating the importance of physical and sensory aspects of the environment when designing learning and living spaces for children and adults with Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD), this pack contains five articles, including two by the architect involved, which describe how new residential accommodation was designed specifically for children with ASD at Sunfield School, and the effects that the new environment had on the children and staff who lived at work there.	Download full details and order form
COMMENT My first impression of Sunfield was of its loving atmosphere of care. My enduring impression is of the living and learning environment which empowers that TLC.Sunfield’s older buildings evoke Rudolph Steiner with its belief that no matter how damaged the mind or body, a person’s spirit remains intact. Sunfield’s newer buildings are equally inspirational, especially the autism-specific areas.I am delighted that this information pack on how to design living and learning environments demonstrates some of the school’s thinking and research in practical terms. Congratulations. Dame Stephanie Shirley The Shirley Foundation

	Enabling Access: Effective teaching and learning for children with learning difficulties (2nd edition)
	Edited by Barry Carpenter, Rob Ashdown and Keith Bovair 2001 Published by David Fulton, London

	Families in Context: Emerging trends in family support and early intervention
	Edited by Barry Carpenter 1997 Published by David Fulton, London

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INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES
Communication and self-advocacy

‘“I mean, really, can you imagine?”, PMLD-Link, 11 (2), 2–3
Jan Millward (1999) A description of the ethos and practice which underpinned the Communication Support Worker role across site in a residential school for children with severe and complex learning needs.

‘The student council at Sunfield’, SLD Experience, 36 (Summer), 27–30
Lesley Ross, Lee Kelly, Stacey Lee and Mark Pearson (2003) Sunfield has had its own Student Council since 1996. Student members of the Council and head teacher, Lesley Ross, share their experiences.

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Curriculum development

‘A multi-modal approach to literacy’, SLD Experience, 23 (Spring), 10–11
Barry Carpenter (1999) Suggestions for how to make the Literacy Hour relevant for young people with severe learning difficulties.

‘An evaluation of SIECCA: an intensive programme of education and care for students with profound autistic spectrum disorders’, Good Autism Practice, 2 (1), 52–66
Barry Carpenter, Iain Chatwin and Jo Egerton (2001) SIECCA is an integrated curriculum approach, based on several established interventions, devised at Sunfield to meet the needs of young people with autism who present a severe challenge to staff and families. Together with a case study, this article describes the rationale, implementation and development of SIECCA.

‘Building the curriculum for information and communication technology: a teaching and learning development’, PMLD–Link, 15 (3), 8–10
Rob Smith (2003) A description of the steps the specialist ICT teacher at Sunfield took to move the school forward in its use of ICT in the everyday lives of our young people and their curriculum.

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The Arts

‘Expanding dance’, PMLD-Link, 32 (Winter), 4–6
Peppy Hills (1998) Exploring themes, ideas and stimuli through dance with children with severe and complex learning needs as a basis for visual art expression in a land-based arts project.

‘Innovations in the arts: the Sunmoves project’, Special Education Perspectives, 12 (2), 3–11
Barry Carpenter and Peppy Hills (2003) When well taught, the arts provide children of all backgrounds and levels of ability with experiences that engage their hearts, their minds and their bodies. This article describes the model used at Sunfield and the promotion of meaningful learning experiences in the arts for children with severe and complex learning needs.

‘Punctuating space’, Animated (summer), 37–38
Peppy Hills (2000) Developing dance themes, ideas and stimuli as a land-based arts project with and for children with severe learning disabilities.

‘Rescuing the arts: the Sunmoves Project’, SLD Experience (Spring), 22–24
Barry Carpenter and Peppy Hills (2002) The arts have been sorely neglected in recent years, with a lack of priority for music, dance, drama and art within the National Curriculum. However, recent reports have highlighted the value of the arts for all children. This article describes how Sunfield has created meaningful arts experiences for children with severe learning difficulties.

‘Sum of the parts’, PMLD–Link, 14 (1), 15–18
Peppy Hills and Tess Hills (2002) A celebration of visual and performance arts for young people with severe and complex learning needs through arts residences and activity days – a description of format, feedback and key elements for success.

‘Sunmoves’, Dance Matters, 27 (Spring), 3–5
Peppy Hills (2000) A reflection on two arts projects, one at Sunfield, by dance artist and independent consultant, Peppy Hills.

‘Sunmoves: a land-based arts project’, Sensory Trust Newsletter (Spring)
Peppy Hills (2000) Developing dance themes, ideas and stimuli as a land-based arts project with and for children with severe learning disabilities.

‘Sunmoves’, Special Children (April), 12–15
Linda Evans (2001) School grounds are often underused as a creative and education resource, but two artists-in-residence have helped to transform the open space at Sunfield School, providing pupils with new experiences and extra opportunities for learning. This article describes how.

‘“When something is different, people fear it”: children’s perceptions of an arts-based inclusion project’
Teresa Whitehurst and Amy Howells An evaluation of a music and drama project between a mainstream middle school and Sunfield’s pupils with severe and complex learning needs, which culminated in a performance at a Birmingham theatre.

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Early intervention

‘Defining early childhood intervention: international perspectives and parent thoughts: a briefing paper
Barry Carpenter (2004) A brief introduction to the impact the birth of a child with learning disabilities has on the family, and the consequent need for early childhood intervention, together with recommendations for further reading.

‘Defining early intervention for the 21st century: the first step towards social inclusion’, SLD Experience, 33 (Summer), 8–10
Barry Carpenter (2002) Writing as a parent and a professional, Barry Carpenter argues that early intervention needs to be acknowledged as society’s response to its social responsibility for families who have a child with learning disabilities, rather than as a platform for economic and political debate.

‘Real prospects for early childhood intervention: family aspirations and professional implications’. University College, Worcester
Barry Carpenter (2005) This professorial lecture discusses the range of national policy initiatives (e.g. Early Support, the National Service Framework, etc.) and how they can offer support to very young children with disabilities and their families.

‘Supporting families: the case for early intervention’, REACH: Journal of Special Needs Education in Ireland, 12 (2), 75–84
Barry Carpenter and Sue Carpenter (1999) Through their experiences, both as parents and professionals working with families, the authors describe some of the different areas of life in which families of children with learning difficulties may experience anxiety and the ways in which they can empower one another.

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Families

'Fairer to Fathers: the role of schools in nurturing positive fatherhood - a United Kingdom perspective'
Barry Carpenter (2007) Fatherhood in this 21st century is changing. There is wider societal recognition that, for the sake of our children, we need to value fathers and the contribution they make to family life. In the United Kingdom, various initiatives are actively supporting 'Dads' in their role. For fathers of children with disabilities, there are even greater challenges to their fatherhood. This article reviews ways in which fathers of children with disabilities have traditionally been viewed. It asks schools to reflect on ways in which they engage fathers, and makes specific reference to the UK report (chaired by the author) on Recognising Fathers (Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities, 2006) Originally published in Kairaranga - the New Zealand journal of educational practice.		Click here to download You will need a pdf reader. To avoid any difficulties, please ensure you have the most up to date version on your pc. You can obtain the latest free copy of Adobe Reader by clicking on the link below

‘Celebrating families: an inclusive model of family-centred training’, British Journal of Special Education, 31 (2), 75–80
Barry Carpenter, Mandy Addenbrooke, Elizabeth Attfield and Sally Conway (2004) This article describes an innovative week of training days, entitled ‘Celebrating Families’, which took place at Sunfield, Worcestershire, in July 2002

‘Correlations between perceptions of mothers who have children with learning disabilities about their families and various family variables’
Onur Kurt, Atilla Cavkaytar, Gonul Kircaali-Iftar (2004) Powerpoint presentation This project examines mothers’ perceptions of support and sharing among family members, and within-family responsibilities and problems, in 195 families

‘Defining the family: towards a critical framework for families of children with disabilities’, European Journal of Special Education, 13 (2), 180–188
Barry Carpenter (1998) Family-centred approaches are recognised internationally as the most appropriate way of working with families who have a child with learning disabilities. This article addresses the issues which need to be thought through before approaches can be truly family-centred.

‘Home and away’, Learning Disability Practice, 7 (7), 34–38
Sally Conway and KellyJo O’Neill (2004) The outcomes of interviews with siblings whose brothers and sisters with learning difficulties are living away from home at Sunfield.

‘Happy families’, Special Children, November/December, 34–37
Barry Carpenter, Sally Conway and Andrew Woodgate (2003) In a move to adopt a more family-centred approach to its service provision, Sunfield started by surveying family members’ views. This is a description of the approach and the feedback received.

‘Inside the portrait of a family: the importance of fatherhood’, Early Child Development and Care, 172 (2), 195–202
Barry Carpenter (2002) Official definitions and professional practice rarely confirm the father in his nurturing role, which debilitates both the father and his family. This article advocates the need for legislation to recognise the role of fatherhood in the context of the modern family.

‘Market solution’, Special Children, 119 (April/May), 16–18
Barry Carpenter and Andrew Woodgate (1999) This article describes how marketing, far from being a ruthless ‘hard-sell’ device, can bring all round benefits in special education. It particularly relates to a family as a basis for service development.

‘Shifting the focus: from parent to family partnerships’, Special Education Perspectives, 12 (1), 3–16
Barry Carpenter (2003) This article focuses on the way in which schools can update their thinking, policy and practice in relation to their partnership with parents and families.

‘Sustaining the family: meeting the needs of families of children with disabilities’, British Journal of Special Education, 27 (3), 135–144
Barry Carpenter (2000) From a parent/professional perspective, the author considers the needs of the self-defining family, the implications for interdisciplinary practice, the changing pattern of childhood disability and what this means for professionals.

‘Using the “F” word’, Special Children, September, 24–25
Linda Evans (2002) A reflection on a week of family-focused events, led by Don Meyer, Director of the Siblings Support Project in Seattle, that evolved from a partnership between Sunfield, Contact a Family and Autism West Midlands.

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Health

‘Count us in: the role of schools and colleges in meeting the mental health needs of young people with learning disabilities’, British Journal of Special Education, 30 (4), 202–206
Barry Carpenter and Hazel Morgan (2003) In December 2002, the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities (FPLD)’s Committee of Inquiry into the mental health needs of young people with learning disabilities produced its report. The Chair of the Committee and the Head of the FPLD share insights into the process and summarise the key findings.

‘The mental health needs of young people with profound and multiple learning disabilities’, PMLD–Link, 16 (1), 9–12
Barry Carpenter (2004) The Count Us In inquiry uncovered evidence of a dearth of provision for young people with profound and multiple learning difficulties and emotional and mental health needs. This article describes the emerging themes and issues.

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Leisure

‘One tree – many branches: 1st Clent (Sunfield) Guides’, PMLD–Link, 15 (2), 11–12
Sandra Allen (2003) A guider’s description of running a guide unit for young girls with severe and complex learning needs with ideas for how to make it relevant.

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Mainstream support for young people with ASD

‘Inclusion – addressing the rhetoric–reality gap’
Chris Nield and Jo Egerton (2005) An evaluation of the support of a 6-year-old girl with autistic spectrum disorder in a mainstream classroom – the work of Sunfield Assessment & Outreach Service in collaboration with the LEA, school and parents.

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Professional Training
Changing Children - Changing Schools? Concerns for the future of teacher training in special education
Barry Carpenter, Chief Executive, Sunfield School, Worcestershire, and Honorary Professor of Early Childhood Intervention at the University of Worcester "The provision of teachers equipped to face the rapidly changing profile of diverse disability in our children is not only under threat, but is non-existent.......More than ever, we need university departments offering in-depth, reflective courses that not only enable teachers to acquire the skills and knowledge to offer high quality education to children with S/PMLD, but also push back the boundaries of what we know and how we can teach, and evolve some of the pedagogy that as yet we do not have." In this article, originally published in PMLD Link (summer 2007), Sunfield's Chief Executive, Prof Barry Carpenter expresses his serious concerns for the future of teacher training in special education.		Click here to download You will need a pdf reader. To avoid any difficulties, please ensure you have the most up to date version on your pc. You can obtain the latest free copy of Adobe Reader by clicking on the link below

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Therapies

‘Developing a counselling service for students with severe learning disabilities and profound autism’
Nick Logan, Brian Cowley, Caroline Winstanley and Abigail Gallivan (2005) A description of the use of counselling approaches and techniques to reveal the emotions and feelings of young people with a diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder and how this can help them self-control outbursts of anger or frustration.

‘Facilitating effective engagement with children with autism through the medium of colour’, PMLD–Link, 14 (2), 21–24
Diana Pauli and Melanie Smart (2002) An interim report on a long-term research project which looks at how coloured light can be used to enhance social interaction for children with severe autism. This article is based on case-study vignettes of the children involved, and describes children’s increased enjoyment and focus in interaction.

‘Listening skills and games to help improve listening’
Sandra Allen (2002) Poor listening skills and discrimination affect a young person’s ability to self-correct, to be aware of intonation/inflection and to perceive meaning. This booklet, written by Sunfield’s senior speech and language therapist, aims to give some ideas for helping young people with severe learning difficulties to improve their listening skills.

‘“Rock-a-bye Blues”: music as a tool for parents’, PMLD–Link, 16 (3), 37–39
Julie Wylie and Dr Susan Foster-Cohen (2004) (For CD, see following.) An article about a 6-month, musical intervention for parents and carers of children with, or at risk of, profound and multiple learning difficulties. During this intervention, Julie Wylie documented children’s emerging physical and social co-ordination, and their increasing capacity to play and enjoy being with their parents or carers, through musical interactions.

‘“Rock-a-bye Blues”: calming interactive songs for children, parents and caregivers’		CD
Compiled and directed by Julie Wylie (in association with Dr Beth Bolton, Temple University (USA), and Beth Rankin, La Trobe University (Australia)) Related to the article above, this CD contains an eclectic range of songs and lullabies from around the world. Produced by an international group of music therapists and musicians, its purpose is to aid the development of a wider listening and interaction vocabulary between children with profound and multiple learning difficulties and their parents or carers.

‘The Sunfield Colour Impact Project’, PMLD–Link, 12 (2), 12–16
Diana Pauli, Jo Egerton and Barry Carpenter (1999/2000) A report on the pilot phase of a long-term research project (see ‘39’ above) which looks at use of coloured light as a context for social interaction with children with severe autism.

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Transition

‘Transition planning and the needs of young people and their carers: the alumni project’, British Journal of Special Education, 31 (3), 128–137
Melanie Smart (2004) The results of a small-scale survey which looked at the views of 17 parents whose children with severe and/or complex learning difficulties had made the transition from Sunfield to an adult placement.

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Sunfield briefing sheets

Sunfield briefing sheets (pack)
The pack includes briefing sheets about practice and past and present research projects at Sunfield. These are also available singly with orders which include other items from this leaflet:
a. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) b. Autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) c. Counselling for children and young people with learning disabilities and ASD d. Down’s syndrome e. Epilepsy f. Fragile-X syndrome g. Inclusion in the community: support for young people with ASD (A Practice Briefing Sheet) h. Mental health problems in persons with intellectual disability and ASD i. Mental health: recognising and understanding problems and their causes j. Pathological demand avoidance syndrome k. Self-injurious behaviour l. The Sunfield Colour Impact Project m. Transition planning and the needs of young people and their carers n. Using social stories with children with ASD.

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Sunfield, Woodman Lane, Clent, near Stourbridge, West Midlands, DY9 9PB Tel: 01562 882253
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