A lot of neurodivergent young people who attend school have positive experiences, but many more can experience low levels of peer social support and high levels of bullying and rejection by their peers, as well as feeling disconnected from school.
The term “neurodivergent” is used to describe people who are different from the “neurotypical” majority in how they learn, think and experience the world. This includes people who have various diagnoses - such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia or dyspraxia/developmental coordination disorder (DCD) - as well as those waiting for a diagnosis. Recent data suggests that about 15 per cent of the population is neurodivergent.
Some neurodivergent young people may want or need support to feel connected to their school community and build friendships that work for them. Support from neurodivergent peers can be especially helpful, as neurodivergent students often have a better understanding of each other’s experiences than neurotypical students do.
For example, autistic adults have reported increased feelings of comfort and ease around other autistic people, reporting feeling “at home” and finding a sense of “belonging” in autistic spaces.
Peer support also allows neurodivergent young people to be accepted as they are, rather than feeling like they should mask their true selves to conform to neurotypical social norms. Groups can provide a safe space for neurodivergent students to have fun with their peers, engage in their choice of activities, learn about neurodiversity and explore feelings related to their own neurodivergence.
They also provide an opportunity for the whole school to learn more about neurodivergence and for neurodivergent students to be involved in decision making.
We have worked with a group of neurodivergent young people and adults to create a free suite of materials - called the NEurodivergent peer Support Toolkit (NEST) - to help mainstream secondary schools set up and run peer support groups for neurodivergent students.
A sense of community
The idea came from some previous research with autistic school-leavers, who said that they would have liked a space to share with like-minded people during their school years and that having a peer support space with other autistic pupils would have been beneficial. They also said that peer support should be open to, and welcoming of, all neurodivergent pupils, as this would create a more inclusive environment and help them build a sense of community.
The co-designed materials have been trialled and evaluated in four Scottish secondary schools so far, and the study found that the groups facilitated the establishment of friendships between students and helped reduce feelings of loneliness.
One student said: “I got absolutely lonely in primary because anyone I tried to socialise with would just ignore me because I am ‘too annoying’ because all I talk about is my special interests.”
Another added: “I can socialise for a change. I don’t usually talk to people much and I talk to people here so that is fun.”
One facilitator also explained the boost in confidence that had been seen in students attending the groups: “They don’t always talk about their own diagnosis or their own feelings about that, so this is a chance to explicitly talk about that, and they seem happy. I don’t know if that is a direct result of that, but they seem really content with who they are and very strong in their own identity in a way that I don’t think they did before…it is lovely. It is really lovely. You don’t often get that with kids these days.”
The materials are there to support schools who’d like to provide some extra support for neurodivergent pupils but don’t know where to start. They will first help teachers reflect on whether a peer support group is right for the neurodivergent students in their school, giving guidance on important things to consider before they get started.
If teachers do decide to set up a group, we hope the materials will help them feel confident to do so in a way which is fun, inclusive, and student-led, and which is aligned with what neurodivergent students themselves want out of peer support.
Charlotte Webber is a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Edinburgh. For more information, visit the NEST website
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