It’s almost that time of year again! We’re looking forward to our third year of running this awareness and celebration event for staff and students.
This year, you’ll notice some familiar activities and content themes but with some special guest appearances and the return of the brains…🧠 Not only this but we will also have an interactive drop in on the ground floor of Catalyst every day from 10am-2pm so please come along to engage with colleagues, peers and friends. There will be opportunities to listen to words of wisdom, share your own and show us your brain – no surgical procedures or tools will be used, provided or encouraged in the delivery of this activity…
One of our key messages:
It’s important to tune into your physical, mental and emotional needs. One way to think about this is to focus on your strengths and try and avoid the things that do not feel good, things that may trigger stress or any negative stuff generally. We want to help you do this through our workshops and activities.
What’s on:
| Monday 20 October 2025 | Catalyst event space activity 10am-2pm Introduction to Neurodiversity 12-12:45pm | Hybrid – open to everyone Location: Willow (Catalyst, first floor) |
| Tuesday 21 October 2025 | Catalyst event space activity 10am-2pm LTD Microsoft Accessibility features spotlight 11-11:45am | Hybrid – open to everyone Location: Willow (Catalyst, first floor) |
| Wednesday 22 October 2025 | Catalyst event space activity 10am-2pm Lunch time live with your disability officer – Sam Woods 12-12:30pm | In person – open to everyone Location: Willow (Catalyst, first floor) |
| Thursday 23 October 2025 | Catalyst event space activity 10am-2pm ADHD workshop – a strength-based approach and avoiding burnout 12-1pm | Hybrid – open to everyone Location: Willow (Catalyst, first floor) |
| Friday 24 October 2025 | Event space activity 11am-2pm |
On Wednesday 22 October our SU Disability Officer, Sam Wood is talking to his experiences and offering students a chance to ask questions and find out more about the support the Student Union can offer. Sam’s rich experience will no doubt be enlightening, powerful and relatable – hopefully you’re as excited as we are.
Our colleague Leon Fraser will be available to speak with staff and students about the excellent work in the department to support neurodiverse learners including personalised support, inclusive pedagogy, awareness-raising activities, and targeted employability programs. This work has been complimented by our collaborations with school partners and mentors in this space.
To reintroduce Neurodiversity:
If you’re a little late to the party, Neurodiversity is a movement, a community and a world where neurological differences are recognised. It’s a term to represent different thinking styles, ways of processing and communicating, to name a few. Neurodivergent or Neurodiverse is how some may describe themselves.
We like to think we take a strength and person-centred approach to viewing and supporting our different thinkers…
But why are we still doing this event? Good question. The answer is simple. Brains ain’t going anywhere so neither are we 😊
We as humans are SO varied, so our message is embrace your variation, support yourself using the ways that suit you and others by learning and understanding, and let us empower you, empower yourself and those around you.
Check out the portal if you want to meet with us directly or slide into our shared inbox if you want to talk shop.
Direction of travel for us is to collaborate more and bring all the wonderful work across the university, together using our events and the connections we make during the events, as the glue. Not only this but we work all year round on educating ourselves to do better for our staff and for students.
Resources to browse
We’ve curated a reading list on Libby with a selection of eBooks and audiobooks to help support your wellbeing, and to help you understand yourself and uncover your strengths. If you prefer a physical book, we have a selection in our Reading for Pleasure Collection on the ground floor of Catalyst. You can also suggest a book that you think might help you on your journey of self-discovery, via our Reading for Pleasure Suggestion form.
