Concerned about your child’s movement or development?

Parents often contact me because they’re wondering whether something is normal, whether they should be worried, or whether there might be a better way to support their child.

Sometimes a baby isn’t reaching milestones at the same pace as their peers. Sometimes a child seems uncomfortable, awkward or uncoordinated in movement. Sometimes parents simply feel that something doesn’t seem quite right.

I help parents make sense of what they’re seeing.

Parents often contact me with questions such as:

Babies

• I can’t seem to get my baby to settle or calm down.
• My baby hates tummy time and screams. It feels awful making them do it.
• They’re not rolling/crawling yet. I don’t know whether that’s important.
• They cry until I help them change position.
• Everyone else’s baby seems further ahead than mine.
• Something doesn’t seem quite right, but I’ve been told to wait and see.

Children

• Sitting on the floor is uncomfortable.
• They don’t put their heels down when they walk.
• They’ve become much more uncoordinated since their growth spurt.
• They’re having pain when running, dancing or playing sport.
• They avoid PE or physical activities.
• Other children don’t want them on their team. It’s affecting them socially.
• I’d like them to feel more comfortable and confident in their body.

What happens in a session?

Every child is different, so we’ll start by talking about your concerns and getting to know your child.

I’ll observe how your child moves, plays and interacts. With older children I’ll ask them questions too. If we’re looking at a particular activity, such as walking, running, dancing or sport, I may ask you to send video footage prior so we can look at what is happening.

Parents are involved throughout and remain part of the conversation from beginning to end. You’re the expert on your child. I’ll bring my specialist knowledge of movement development. Together we’ll build a clearer picture of what’s happening and what might help.

I use movement, play, touch, songs and rhythm to connect with your child and create an environment where learning can happen naturally.

Some children are immediately curious and happy to engage with me. Others need longer to get to know me. If your child isn’t ready to work directly with me, I’ll often teach you what to do instead, so you can explore it together at home.

For babies and younger children, sessions take place in person. We’ll work with your child’s pacing, so there will often be pauses for feeding, changing, cuddles or simply taking a break. There’s no pressure to perform.

With older children, sessions can take place in person or online, depending on the child’s age and needs.

I’ll also show you simple things to explore between sessions, so that learning continues at home.

The touch I teach often becomes another way of connecting with your child. Children don’t separate movement, communication, emotional and social development. They experience them as one process.

What does this look like in practice?

Sitting comfortably on the floor

Recently, I worked with an 8-year-old girl who was finding it uncomfortable to sit on the floor at school.

Rather than focusing solely on sitting itself, to solve the problem, I took her back to revisit earlier developmental movements that help prepare us for comfortable sitting. The challenge was finding playful ways for her to explore them at home without getting bored. Rolling quickly became a favourite. Creeping, on the other hand, was much harder work.

After a few months she was able to sit comfortably in a variety of positions, both at school and at home. Her Mum also noticed that she seemed calmer and more positive in herself.

Finding confidence in standing

Let me tell you a little about Maia, a 15-month-old who had recently started walking. She was very curious and playful. She stood on the edges of her feet, with curled toes and straight knees, often a sign that standing isn’t yet entirely comfortable. Maia could only take a few steps before returning to the security of a squat.

Through games, songs, movement and touch, we explored how Maia sensed her feet, and how they connected to the floor, so she could find more support through them. Her Mum was involved throughout, and at the end of the lesson I showed Mum ways to continue playing with these ideas at home.

By the end of the session Maia was standing more comfortably on the whole of her feet, with softer knees and relaxed toes. She was able to cruise, walk and play upright for much longer before resting. With less attention needed for balance, Maia was able to use her hands more freely than before to explore, play and pass toys to her Mum. She looked much more comfortable and confident in standing.

Working with Babies

Babies learn about themselves and the world through movement. Rolling, reaching, pushing, creeping, crawling, sitting and standing are more than milestones. They’re part of how babies discover themselves, other people and their environment.

My work with babies is informed by Child’Space, a developmental approach created by Dr Chava Shelhav, one of Moshe Feldenkrais’ first students.

Rather than teaching babies what to do, we help babies feel themselves more clearly, and create opportunities for them to explore and discover new possibilities.

Parents are crucial to this process. Child’Space philosophy creates a three-way conversation between baby, parent and practitioner. The aim is not only to support your baby’s development, but also to give you the understanding and tools to continue supporting them at home.

Working with Children

Together we’ll explore how your child moves, what they’re finding difficult, and what might help.

I work with children with and without additional needs, adapting sessions to the individual child and how they learn best.

My aim is not simply to improve movement, but to support learning, confidence and participation in everyday life.

Why work with me?

I’m a qualified Feldenkrais Method and Child’Space Practitioner, with more than 25 years experience working with children as a teacher.

My work combines Child’Space, the Feldenkrais Method and many years of experience supporting children’s learning and development.

Babies and children are natural learners. When they feel supported, they can discover new possibilities surprisingly quickly. Addressing a concern early can often make it easier to support their development before an unhelpful pattern becomes a bigger challenge

Get in touch.

Tell me a little about your child and what you’re concerned about.