I have had an interest and passion in supporting individuals with additional needs from a young age as my younger brother has Down’s Syndrome. After leaving school I initially went to University to train as a teacher, gaining my undergraduate degree in education and going on to work in a mainstream school. This wasn’t the career path that I had hoped for and found that my drive was to advocate for and support my learners with additional needs, something I was not able to do in that role.
I applied to work as an ‘Educational Therapist’ for a child with ASD in the summer of 2009. I always say, had that family been advertising for an ‘ABA tutor’ I wouldn’t have applied, having not heard of Applied Behaviour Analysis at this stage! I was successful in gaining that position and very quickly was in awe of the fantastic work the team were doing and the skills that the learner was acquiring; I knew I had found my calling. Having worked in a tutor role with local families for a few years, I went on to complete post-graduate training in Applied Behaviour Analysis from Florida Institute of Technology and gained my BCaBA (Board Certified Assistant Behaviour Analyst) qualification in February 2014. I eventually went on to complete my MSc through Queen’s University Belfast, graduating in 2018 and gained my BCBA qualification in August 2021.
I am very proud to be one of the original ‘Skybounders’ having joined the company in January 2013. I have been extremely grateful for the fantastic opportunities that Skybound has provided in working with many young people and their families, each of whom teach me something and amaze me every day. I’ve also had extensive training opportunities and am passionate in expanding my own knowledge and expertise in order to bring the best of our science to my clients.
In my free time I enjoy travelling and exploring new places with my husband, Anthony. We do enjoy a holiday and will very rarely visit the same place twice, so when we do visit a country we like to make the most of the opportunities! I enjoy staying fit and healthy with the occasional HIIT class or running/volunteering with the local ParkRun.