SEN Policy Research Forum Blog submissions

Blog submissions

Contributions to the SEN Policy Research Forum blog are welcome!

Our aim for this blog is to publish thought-provoking, short-form pieces that are research-informed, accessible, and which find points of contact between research and policy in relation to Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND). We encourage discussion through comments on each blog post, or blog posts that respond to previously published blogs.

The pieces published here will be of interest to academics, students, policymakers, parents, education professionals – anyone to whom SEND policy and research is of interest. Blogs can be a great way for academic authors to reach audiences they might not otherwise have access to.

We welcome submissions all year round. Feel free to send in your contribution or contact us to discuss ideas and possibilities. Submissions can be either individual or collaborative pieces. Please indicate in the email if publication of your piece is time sensitive (e.g. you’re responding to a recent education-related news story).

Submit a Word document by email to sharon@sharonsmith.net with the title ‘Blog submission’.

All submissions will be reviewed and edited before publication. While we endeavour to respond to authors as soon as possible (particularly for posts that are time sensitive), please bear in mind that it may take a few days to review a submission.

Blog posts will be:

400-1200 words. (Please contact us if a particular post requires a different length).
Have a short, clear title and opening questions to engage the reader and convey what it is about
Close with questions that invite readers to comment.

Further details about blogs

All posts should be written in clear, concise, accessible language. Use short sentences, dot points and short paragraphs to make it easy for busy people to skim quickly. Avoid acronyms and jargon.
Where possible, embed links to online sources in your text; hyperlinked text need not be separately referenced (in text or in the reference list); do not link to sites containing obscene or illegal material, or which break intellectual property law.
Visuals are welcome. Please provide a reference or copyright information. Preferred are image file type as JPEG (also known as JPG), at least 750 pixels wide.
All posts should be written in English using British spelling, except for quoted text
Please do not use footnotes. Insert hyperlinks to relevant materials that are available online in the text of the document. Please use Harvard referencing style where citations are needed and links cannot be used.
Please use single quotation marks for ‘direct quotes’ and ‘scare quotes’ and double quotation marks ‘for “quotes within quotes.”’
Please use inclusive language that recognises and is sensitive to diversity, which exhibits respect to all individuals.
Ensure you have obtained all licences and/or approvals and copyright permissions, where required.
For each author, provide a brief biography with current affiliations/s and main areas of interest relevant to SEN policy research, (no more than 150 words) and a photograph. You are welcome to include links to any professional/faculty webpages or any other information you wish to be included should your piece be published.