Providing dyslexia assessment and support services
You welcome to call or email for free advice related to assessment, tuition and therapy. Whilst government restrictions continue we are providing services online.
Enquiries: ruth@rightmind.life / phone or text: 07919 405 501
Thank you
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To find us – by appointment only: Perception House, 50b Duke Street, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 1JA
All enquires to: Ruth Gravelle (text/phone) 07919 405 501 – ruth@rightmind.life
Anna works as an independent associate of rightmind.life…
Sue works as an independent associate of rightmind.life. She started her career as a Leicestershire primary school teacher, before training as an Educational Psychologist (in 1992). Sue then began to work extensively with mainstream and special schools, and also with FE providers for Coventry City Council. Sue enjoyed working within the Local Authority for the next ten years, where she helped to develop, and deliver training courses for teachers on dyslexia. Sue became Co-Director of the Warwick University Postgraduate M.Ed (SEN) Teacher Module at this time.
In 2001, Sue began to focus her efforts within the Youth Justice arena, establishing and disseminating good educational practice and promoting inter-agency developments across the locality and region. Sue drew upon her involvement with supporting Looked After Children and other vulnerable groups, when developing a system for schools and the local Youth Court to reduce youth custodial sentencing rates. Sue was the Parenting Officer for Coventry Youth Offending service at this time, working extensively with parents.
Whilst working as a Specialist Senior Educational Psychologist and Parenting Officer, Sue began to deliver training and assessment services to the Courts. Before leaving the Local Authority to set up in independent practice, Sue had began work to develop multi-agency client focussed signposting, and information sharing referral points. Over the past 15 years, Sue’s work with the Courts has become increasingly specialised, and is now focussed upon helping the Family Courts to understand the needs of parents with learning difficulties. Indeed, Sue has always had a particular interest in working with parents, starting her first support group for parents (of children with dyslexia) in Solihull in 1993. Sue was awarded a Doctoral degree by the University of Warwick for her thesis, which included the development of measures of Quality and Effectiveness for psychologists working in the Youth Justice setting.
Sue acted as a Consulting Psychologist for the former Dyslexia Action from 2003 until it’s closure in 2017. Sue continues to support children young people, parents, education providers and employers by delivering Dyslexia Action style assessments where needed. Sue also delivers Form 8 and DSA assessments as a matter of course, and covers matters concerning dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia within her reports. Sue can sometimes offer discounted rates for block bookings for DSA’s.
Most importantly, Sue feels that her main asset is that she is friendly and approachable. Sue works in Leics, Lincs, Cambs, Notts, Derbyshire and Essex.
Ruth has over 20 years experience as a specialist teacher and has worked a hypnotherapist since 2012. She is the first point of contact if you would like to discuss the services offered through rightmind.life.
Ruth has supported adults with learning difficulties and mental health issues, further and higher education students as well as children, and adults in the workplace. Her largely pictorial book, Inside-out, is about understanding and supporting people experiencing dyslexia. Ruth founded and was a director of Dyslexia Rooms at Chelmsford (2006-2014) and has worked as a school SENDCo (KS1-2). She was Principal of Dyslexia Action’s Chelmsford Learning Centre (2014-2016) and presented CCR’s talk show, Life-Matters, with topics related to dyslexia, health and range of other issues (2016-2017). Ruth publishes educational and therapeutic videos through YouTube.
Ruth is a member of the National Hypnotherapy Society (NHS), approved by The Royal College of Nursing. She is DSB checked, insured and belongs to the professional associations for teaching (PATOSS) and hypnotherapy (The National Hypnotherapy Society).
“My work is about enabling people to achieve their goals.”
Ruth Gravelle: BA (Hons), OCR Dip SpLD, NLP Practitioner, Dip Hyp CS, QHHT Practitioner and Reiki Master.
Stella Alexiou has over 15 years experience as a level 7 dyslexia specialist teacher, and over 20 years experience as a teacher with QTS.
Stella has worked in a number of UK primary and secondary schools in London, including Islington and Hackney. She was Lead Teacher ensuring SATs were carried out accurately and to the standard of the DfE. Stella started her own business delivering private tuition ad eventually trained as a dyslexia specialist with The Dyslexia Institute.
Stella worked for Dyslexia Action as Senior Teacher within both the London Learning Centre and the Chelmsford Learning Centre. Over the 15 years working at Dyslexia Action she delivered many services – teaching, assessments, exam access arrangements, screening, awareness training, workplace consultancy, parent courses, and CPD training for youth offending teams, schools, colleges and universities.
Stella has since worked as an associate lecturer for the Institute of Education and Edge Hill University, and for the BDA within the workplace needs, training and teaching department. Stella has an up to date DBS subscription, insurance, and is a member of the Suffolk Dyslexia Association.
Stella Alexiou BA (Hons), QTS, PGCE Dyslexia and Literacy, AMBDA, ATS, WNA’
Julie works as an independent change therapist in association with rightmind.life. She has developed and trailed her own programmes for quick and lasting change, including ‘Reduce Weight.’ Julie has studied and trained with some of the best teachers in the field of cutting edge psychological change techniques for over 20 years. She uses therapeutic skills as a Master Practitioner of NLP and Master Hypnotic Practitioner, as well as energy healing, coaching, and techniques including EFT and TFT to enable clients to make healthy changes. This allows her to concentrate on mind and body as one. Julie has a passion for guiding people to make the changes they require; to live the life they really want.
“The never ending cycle of wanting to change but thinking it cannot be done or it will be difficult has its own misery, let alone the condition you are wanting to change, be that anxiety, addiction, weight loss, fears, phobias, chronic pain, or even fertility problems… Yes, even fertility problems can be changed with the mind!” – Julie Scrafton
Marilyn specialises in assessment of children and young people. She works as an independent associate of righmind.life and for the British Dyslexia Association (BDA).
Marilyn graduated from Brighton University in 1998 after completing her BA (Hons) degree in Music & Art. She then completed her teacher training at Canterbury Christ Church University in 2004 and was awarded a PGCE with QTS. Initially working across the primary age range, she began to specialise in the field of early literacy development and completed the required training to work as a Reading Recovery teacher in 2010. Following her experiences of supporting young children to read and write, Marilyn decided to undertake further training in order to offer personalised support for learners of all ages who experience long term literacy difficulties.
Before training with Edge Hill University to become a Specialist Dyslexia Teacher and Assessor, Marilyn worked as a SENCo in a primary school, having been awarded the National Award for Special Educational Needs Coordination (NASENCo) from Bath Spa University.
Marilyn holds a current Assessment Practising Certificate with AMBDA, awarded from the British Dyslexia Association (BDA). Marilyn is DBS checked, insured and is professional member of the BDA.
We provide Workplace Needs Assessments for employees experiencing dyslexic types of learning difference. Assessments are carried out by independent specialists working in association with rightmind.life. Dyslexia related issues such as difficulties with aspects of organisation, sequencing, remembering instructions, memory, reading, writing, spelling and maths can impact upon well-being and performance at work.
The assessment process takes approximately 3 hours. In preparation, employer and employee is required to complete information sheets. A detailed report including recommendations for reasonable adjustments within the workplace is then provided, usually within 10 working days.
As with and often following a formal assessment, a workplace assessment frequently signifies a significant turning point for the person experiencing dyslexia – to be able to take control over their situation. To identify and work with their strengths, perceive dyslexia in a positive way, be goal orientated, develop healthy coping skills and implement effective strategies.
Following on from the assessment, and as required, we can provide 1:1 specialist training/coaching. 5 sessions x 2 hours are often recommended.
For further information, please complete the ‘contact us’ form or email ruth@rightmind.life.
Dr. Anna McGee is a Chartered Educational Psychologist with twenty five years experience of conducting assessments of Dyslexia for young people between the ages of 7 and 18 years. She acted as a Consultant for Dyslexia Action in both Scotland and London and ran her own Adult Assessment Service when she lived in Scotland. Whilst there Dr McGee was the designated psychologist for The Edinburgh Academy, Lothian Police Service and the Army. She also headed a Scottish Office project that identified the support needs of young people with a range of disabilities, including Dyslexia, in the university sector and was a member of the Cross-Party Committee on Dyslexia at The Scottish Parliament. For the past seven years she has been the Head of Research at Sense in London but maintained her assessment practice by continuing to act as a consultant for Dyslexia Action. As this organisation ceased trading in April 2017 however, Dr McGee can now offer her services independently. She is chartered by the HCPC, has a current DBS certificate and Professional Liability Insurance.
Assessments are available from Monday to Saturday inclusive as we are aware that many parents are reluctant to take children out of school to undertake an assessment. The process usually takes approximately 2.5 hours and a comprehensive report detailing the strengths and weaknesses demonstrated by the child is then delivered within two weeks. Further discussion about the outcome of the assessment is available by telephone.