Dr Nic Crossley has over 25 years’ experience in education which spans primary, secondary, mainstream and specialist provision and her research interests are in the factors which contribute to educational underachievement.  She is committed to working with schools to enhance the learning experience for all vulnerable learners; however, her specialist interest areas are Autism and Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH).  

She has previous experience as a Consultant Principal to two Special Academies, as a School Inspector, and has written and led leadership development training for middle and senior leaders in Primary, Secondary and Special education in England, Wales and Jersey. 

She is the co-author of Inclusion: A Principled Guide for School Leaders, and Inclusion: A Principled Guide for Early Career Teachers, both published by Routledge, as part of the NASEN Spotlight series.

She is currently a Council member for ASCL (Association of School and College Leaders), Vice Chair of the Ethics, Inclusion and Equalities Committee, and the national SEND representative.  She is also a member of the Confederation of School Trusts (CST) Policy Advisory Group and co-founder of the MAT SEND Leaders Group.

With a Masters in Educational Leadership and Management (MA), and a Masters in Practice-Based Educational Research (MEd), Nic is also an Honorary Teaching fellow at the Centre for Teacher Education at the University of Warwick, which was awarded in recognition of the contributions made to teacher education.  She is currently a member of the Advisory Committee for the ERSC project 'Conceptualisations of Neurodiversity and barriers to Inclusive Pedagogy for Early Career Teachers (ConNECT)'.