As a woman and neurodiverse led business, we understand the need to create space for everyone – be that our customers, our franchisees and our staff. At Little Learners we create opportunities for EVERY child to make their mark and place diversity and inclusion at the forefront of all we do.
Meet Rachel Fay-Sedgewick – The ADHD Franchisor
I’m Rachel Fay-Sedgwick, former primary teacher turned entrepreneur who is navigating parenthood, business and neurodivergent life. I’m the CEO of Little Learners UK & Little Messy Learners Australia which was created on maternity leave as I wanted a more flexible career. Since then, I’ve grown a network of franchisees internationally, launched a branded venue, become an author, licensed my early writing programme The Mark Makers, mentored businesses and won multiple awards.
At 31, I was diagnosed with severe combined type ADHD. Learning about my neurodiversity has inspired me to speak out more, spread awareness, encourage open conversation, develop coping strategies and promote authenticity.
I’m different; I have a neurodivergent brain, and for most of my life, I’ve been my own worst critic, constantly feeling like I’m not enough or that I don’t ‘fit in’ even when it may not show on the outside. I’ve never been scared of being real and find it easy to be open which is a total paradox because my ADHD has always made me incredibly worried and fixated on what people think of me with a fear of rejection – real or perceived!
Sharing my journey has been unexpected, but so rewarding. It’s ignited my passion to inspire others to thrive by embracing their quirks and using them to their advantage. That’s why I’ve started to create a space for just this: mentorship, courses, public speaking, support, resources and more as The ADHD Franchisor!
Neurodiversity Celebration Week at Little Learners
Neurodiversity Celebration Week is a chance for us all to reflect on how we can further support our neurodiverse family, friends and employees. It is also an opportunity for us to celebrate our wins, recognise achievements and to identify ‘what’s next!’.
At Little Learners & Little Messy Learners we focus on providing inclusive activities for all children and believe in meeting children where they are, rather than where we think they should be. Little Learners UK won the 2024 Diversity & Inclusion Champion Award and we couldn’t have been more thrilled – but there is still so much work for us to do!
For 2025 our plan is to continue building a supportive franchise for our customers, but also our franchisees. We have some big plans and can’t wait to reveal them!
But we haven’t forgotten our classes! Take a look at some of the ways our franchisees help support neurodiverse children in their classes…
Supporting Neurodiverse Children
Part of supporting neurodiverse children is ensuring that they feel celebrated, welcome and that we acknowledge achievement. Celebrating success is at the cornerstone of our Mark Making Programme and we work hard to make sure that every child feels included and represented. Learn more HERE!
Supporting children’s metal health is equally important to us, and as such we’ve created some great resources to help children explore feelings, build self esteem and communicate their needs. Our downloadable affirmations activity can be found HERE!
If you’d like to get involved with Neurodiversity Celebration Week, check out their amazing work HERE!
Thanks for reading!
Rachel – The ADHD Franchisor
