About Us

Founder

With over 35 years of experience in mainstream and special education, Sue Keenan is passionate about supporting children, young adults and families through the power of play. Her career has spanned 35 years in early years, special educational needs, and children’s hospice care. Sue has gained a wealth of qualifications in SEND, PMLD, Child Psychology, Autism, Portage, Signing, PECS, and Being Playful with Music to name but a few. This has given her the grounding and indeed the passion to support children and adults with complex needs to find their pathway to joy. Sue has three grown up children and four grandchildren and is at her happiest when surrounded by them all! Sue loves writing and co-wrote the book ‘Hands full of Rhyme’ which embraces rhyming words and story massage that everyone can enjoy. In her spare time she is writing a book about her own mothers journey with Dementia… aiming to publish when she finally has the time! Sues mantra is ‘Work hard- Play hard’ because having worked for a long time in the hospice world she knows and treasures just how very precious life is.

Sue’s warm and practical approach has helped countless families embrace play as an essential part of care, learning, and connection, and continues to inspire others with her engaging techniques.

Today, through The Play Prescription, Sue creates personalised play plans for children and young people in their home or settings. By working closely with parents, siblings, carers and professionals, she ensures playtime becomes a shared, joyful experience that enriches family life.

Hello!

I’m Sally Pugh, and just a little bit about me and how I came to be working alongside Sue.

I originally trained as a physiotherapist way back in 1984, working with children for the majority of my practising years. In 1989 I undertook an MSc in Rehabilitation Studies at Southampton University where I was lucky enough to undertake some exceptional Disability Awareness training which shaped all my future practice both in health and education. In 1993 I became a teacher, firstly in primary mainstream, and then after a short break to have my own children, I started work at a local specialist School. I was a class teacher for thirteen years, teaching across the age groups, but with a focus on inclusion and community access with the senior and post-16 students. I was involved in inclusive creative arts and music activities, as well as sport and travel.

I stepped back from this school in 2016 to catch my breath, and found myself working as a carer for a local hospice. My time as a carer involved providing respite care to children in their own homes as well as in the hospice. This was an incredibly eye-opening time, when my realisation of how medicalised young people’s lives are on a day by day, hour by hour really are. When was there time for them to be their own person?

And then I met Playmaker Sue………. I worked with Sue as her assistant for a short while, sharing the passion to put each child at the centre of their special playtime, provide personalized and individual choices, recognise individual communications and just ‘be’.

I still enjoy supply teaching back at the specialist school, where I love to get involved in all things sensory, and bring a sensory mindset to curriculum plans. Using the total communication approach, I try to encourage communication based around choice making, allowing for individual and unique engagement and interaction. I have a passion for watching and nurturing the process of involvement in an activity, caring much less about the product. Becoming attuned to the thoughts and feelings of each individual young person allows for recognition of individuality and how to allow the young person to be who they are above all else.