Nicola Brookes is a Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCo) working in a Pupil Referral unit (PRU) setting and is in her third year of a Doctorate in Education (EdD). She has worked in education for 17 years, 12 of which were in a mainstream setting before moving across to work in an Alternative Provision school before joining a PRU. She worked in many schools across the UK in various roles before moving into Special Educational Needs in 2015.