Ellie joined the team at Thrive, following her graduation from The University of Northampton in 2021. Prior to her studies at UON, she worked as a TA in a mainstream primary school with children with SEN, as well as running an equine-assisted learning centre providing individualised sessions for children with additional needs and ASD. These experiences have given her knowledge of child development and the additional needs of families and schools regarding developing strategies to overcome barriers to everyday activities of life.
Ellie works alongside Senior OTs within two specialist schools across Northamptonshire. Ellie’s role and intervention involve supporting students and staff by collaboratively developing strategies that focus on children’s individual sensory and functional needs.
Through the experience of working with children prior to becoming an OT, she has developed skills that enabled her to build strong therapeutic relationships with children and their families. In addition to her training at university, she has completed the DIRFloortime™ Introduction Course, which focuses on using playful, child-led activities to enable developmental growth through meaningful interactions.
She also has experience with child-specific assessments and intervention approaches which will guide her thought processes and interactions with the children she will work with.
Ellie particularly enjoys expanding upon an individual’s personal motivations and interests to build interaction, communication, and life skills. Sensory processing is complex and intriguing to her, so looking at a person holistically to further understand their wants and needs through their interactions with everyday objects and how their worlds can be opened up through these experiences is incredibly interesting.
Ellie is a friendly person who likes to be active and stay positive. When she is not working, she has a keen interest in horses, her young family, and being outside. She is a huge animal lover and currently has three horses, a pony, a dog and a cat.
During the weekend, Ellie and her family are found in a field at an equestrian event, or at a racetrack with her husband’s motorbikes, which gives her a fill of adrenaline and satisfies her urge to live life to the full.
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