Tes SEND Show 2026

Tes SEND Show live podcast with Samantha Asher

Posted on by Mia Mitchell

About this episode

If you missed the Tes SEND Show last week – or were there but couldn’t make every session – this is worth a listen.
 
This is a special episode recorded live at the show, where Dale was joined by Samantha, founder of Journey With Me and an independent SEND advisor with over 20 years’ experience working across early years and primary settings.
 
Sam was at the show delivering a session on emotional regulation through the lens of neurodivergence, and the conversation covers a lot of ground from that session and beyond.
 
Dale and Sam explore why co-regulation must always come before self-regulation, how neurodivergence presents so differently in girls and boys – and why girls are identified so much later as a result – and why understanding fight, flight, freeze, and fawn matters for anyone supporting neurodivergent children.
 
They also have a fascinating conversation about neurodivergent play: why no play is wrong, what schema play tells us about how children are developing, and why a child who lines up cars or spins wheels rather than building a track is still fully engaged – and deserves to be met where they are, not redirected to where we think they should be.
 
Sam also shares the thinking behind her brand name, Journey With Me – and why her role, as she sees it, is not to pull children towards a fixed destination, but to join them on their own path.
 

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MEET THE SPEAKER

About Samantha Asher

Samantha Asher has over 20 years’ experience of working with children across the early years and primary education sectors. She previously led an early years team, that was dedicated to supporting children across the Early Years, and Key Stage One with characteristics of emerging SEND.

Samantha Asher is the founder of Journey with me, an independent SEND support service, offering support to Early Years and Primary settings. Her work is rooted in a strengths-based approach, that is dedicated to supporting every child, based on their own unique profile.

Samantha is committed to delivering high quality, flexible support that considers the needs of the children, families and the wider school community. Samantha works closely with educators, understanding the realities and pressures of school life, and is committed to offering practical, manageable and effective strategies. She believes that building strong relationships are at the heart of inclusion and is dedicated to helping practitioners feel confident and supported, enabling every learner to thrive!

About the Tes SEND Show

The Tes SEND Show is the UK’s largest event dedicated to special educational needs and disabilities, bringing together teachers, SENCOs, school leaders, therapists and parents for two days of CPD, seminars and exhibitors.

This series brings you short summaries of some of the 2026 seminar programme, recorded on site in our pop-up podcast studio. A new episode lands every Tuesday for eight weeks.

Visit tes website All Tes SEND Show episodes

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Mia Mitchell

I am a Marketing Assistant at B Squared. Responsible for promoting the #1 podcast for Special Needs - The SENDcast. I get involved in various projects across the B Squared brands and try to add a bit of sparkle wherever I can!

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