Klaudia Matasovska

Teacher - Educator - Researcher - Academic

about me imageabout me image
She/Her

SEND Specialist/Academic/Researcher

I am a Special Educational Needs and Disabilities specialist with SEND classroom experience of more than 17 years (mild and complex SEND). I am an associate lecturer in Education, Inclusion and SEND at the University of Derby. Between 2022 and 2024 I was the external evaluator for the 'Equally Safe' project funded by the Department of Education. This project focused on inclusion and equality in education concerning identity-based bullying in around 240 (primary and secondary) schools in England. I am a member of the PDA (Society) Research Network. neurodiversity, disability, LGBT+ inclusion with pupils with SEND and employment opportunities for young people with SEND.

I am a full-time doctoral student (PhD candidate). I am researching the educational provision made for students with special educational needs or disabilities who identify as LGBTQ+. Taking an intersectional approach, I explore this issue from the perspective of schoolteachers, and students themselves. I have expertise in qualitative methodologies including interviewing and ethnography. I have had my work published in international, peer-reviewed journals concerning topics, such as neurodiversity, disability, LGBT+ inclusion with pupils with SEND and employment opportunities for young people with SEND. I have also presented my research findings at international academic conferences as well as conferences for educational professionals. I am an experienced educator myself and, in addition to my teaching in special schools, I have also taught at undergraduate and master’s level at both Derby University and Goldsmiths.

I offer SEND-related consultation and training to schools and other types of organisations/individuals with an interest in SEND and/or LGBT+ inclusion for children and young people with SEND. I work with schools, charities and anyone supporting young people with SEND and young people with SEND with LGBT+ identities. Please, see my testimonials to get a better understanding of the work I do.

Links to my academic and social media profiles:
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Klaudia-Matasovska
Goldsmiths PhD Profile: https://www.gold.ac.uk/educational-studies/staff/-phd-students/
Twitter: @Klaudinka
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/klaudia-matasovska-1549549b/

  • Watford, England, United Kingdom

I offer a wide range of training on LGBT+ inclusion with children and young people with SEND, neurodiversity, autism, ableism, challenging behaviour in SEN classrooms and inclusive practice. This is offered both online, and face-to-face. If you want to discuss rates & other details, please email me.


Consulting/Training/Guest Lecturing

Consulting/Training/Guest Lecturing

I offer consultations, training services and webinars that cover the following areas: neurodiversity, autism, ableism, challenging behaviour in SEN classrooms, LGBT+ inclusion with children and young people with SEND. I have also conducted a number of guest lectures at different universities. For example, I gave a guest lecture (the University of Worcester - October '23) in SEND approaches in Slovakia & Czechia. Use the 'Contact Me' section for further details or to book a session with me.

LGBT Voices of Pupils with SEND (written for 'Neurodiverse Voices: Calling for change from intersectional perspectives')

LGBT Voices of Pupils with SEND (written for 'Neurodiverse Voices: Calling for change from intersectional perspectives')

This paper particularly discusses the LGBT voices of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), who are also sometimes referred to as neurodivergent. Within this concept, I am also acknowledging the fact that many neurodivergent people have overlapping conditions and that increases the differences as perceived by society.

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Gender, Autism (ASD) and PDA: Why Support Matters

Gender, Autism (ASD) and PDA: Why Support Matters

First published on January 23, 2023 - here: https://www.sensationaltutors.co.uk/gender-autism-asd-and-pda-why-support-matters/

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Voice Practices to Support LGBTQIA+ Educators and Pupils

Voice Practices to Support LGBTQIA+ Educators and Pupils

This chapter explores the implications of testimonial injustice in limiting the capacity of LGBTQIA+ educators, children, and young people as knowers and testifiers. Both LGBTQIA+ educators and pupils are subjected to this form of epistemic injustice. Testimony is a unique human experience; to speak our truth. We can view educational voice work as having undergone a process of initial theoretical understanding and practice embedding in the early twenty-first century, with the next developmental phase being a collected discussion of arising complexities and future-oriented solutions. Voice work and voice practices in educational contexts are arguably a nascent phenomenon. The development of meaningful voice practices will arguably only arise if educators take time to consider the role of classification by type and constructions of perceived social norms that voice practice activities may reinforce and/or create. The chapter concludes with some further considerations for the future of meaningful voice practices in educational contexts.

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Accessing the voices of students with SENDs: barriers faced by a PhD researcher (20/09/22)

Accessing the voices of students with SENDs: barriers faced by a PhD researcher (20/09/22)

My DE blog on ‘Accessing the voices of students with SENDs: barriers faced by a PhD researcher’ talks about my academic experiences as a PhD researcher regarding access to pupils with SEND in order to hold focus groups with them about topics related to the SEND/LGTB intersection.

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'Gratefully Received' Letter to the Psychologies Magazine (01/11/22)

'Gratefully Received' Letter to the Psychologies Magazine (01/11/22)

My letter to the Psychologies magazine got published in its November '22 issue under the Lifestyle - Healthy Living Section. It is about the joy of missing out and how to achieve better work-life balance.

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External Evaluation Report EqualiTeach: Equally Safe Programme

External Evaluation Report EqualiTeach: Equally Safe Programme

This is the first evaluation report of the Equally Safe project (by EqualiTeach) which I have been an evaluator for (on the behalf of Goldsmiths, University of London) since February '21.

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Exploring Neurodiversity and Gender Diversity (Twinkl SEND Digest - 11/11/21)

Exploring Neurodiversity and Gender Diversity (Twinkl SEND Digest - 11/11/21)

Klaudia has agreed to answer questions with regard to supporting LGBT+ SEND children and youth via curriculum, policies and other avenues. Her answers are recorded in this Twinkl SEND Digest article which investigates how educators can support children and young people who are neurodiverse and gender diverse.

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'Helping SEND Students into Employment''Helping SEND Students into Employment' AchieveAbility E-Journal Neurodiverse Voices: Good Practice in the Workplace - 06/04/20

'Helping SEND Students into Employment''Helping SEND Students into Employment' AchieveAbility E-Journal Neurodiverse Voices: Good Practice in the Workplace - 06/04/20

Page 60: I talk about my 2019 Masters dissertation entitled ‘Strategies for Supporting Young People with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) into employment: a case study of a SEND college in Surrey’. The AchieveAbility E-Journal is the research journal of AchieveAbility and shares the organisation’s overall commitment to promoting policy and delivering practice for successful educational, employment and training opportunities for people who are neurodivergent and dyslexic.

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  • Biography

  • Work History

  •  01/07/2023 07:05 PM

I share important findings from my PhD research around LGBT+/SEND inclusion as well as advice and good practice for how we can support LGBT+/SEND students.

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  •  13/01/2023 06:33 PM

I am very excited about the opportunity to be part of the wonderful ‘SEND in the experts’ podcast of Georgina Durrant's (@senresourceblog). In this podcast episode we talk about: #SEND #LGBTQIA #PDA #neurodiversity #intersectionality. Out later this year - will also be available on YouTube!

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  •  25/12/2022 12:09 AM

This is Audrey Pantelis' podcast - I am featured in Episode 2: SEND, Puberty and RHSE.

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I am very excited about being part of the wonderful ‘SEND in the Experts’ podcast with Georgina Durant (@senresourceblog). In this podcast episode I share my expertise on the LGBT+/SEND intersection- available here: https://t.co/aZaznqDezDRead More


  • Date: 01/03/2023 06:21 PM
  • Location Online Event