About Us
Senstional Kids is an award-winning social enterprise
Sensational Kids is a social enterprise and charity dedicated to making vital therapy services accessible and affordable for children with additional needs across Ireland.
Our mission is to ensure that no child is left waiting for life-changing therapeutic support. We believe every child should have the opportunity to reach their full potential, regardless of financial or geographical barriers.
Sensational Kids supports children with additional needs, including those children who are autistic, dyslexic, dyspraxic or have Downs syndrome, ADHD, sensory processing differences or developmental delays that might require additional support or accommodations at home or at school. We identify and support developmental differences at a young age allowing a child to truly realise their potential in all environments.
Sensational Kids operates four provincial child development centres across Ireland, offering subsidised occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, psychological assessments and play therapy in counties Kildare, Mayo, Cork and Monaghan.
Sensational Kids also operates a non-profit play, develop and learn store, an online learning platform and also fundraises, with all proceeds helping to fund therapy services for children.
Take a Look at what we do in our short videos
What Makes Us Different?
- Affordability and Accessibility: We provide high-quality therapy services at significantly reduced costs, ensuring that financial barriers do not prevent children from receiving the help they need.
- Social Enterprise Model: Sensational Kids operates a sustainable, non-profit model, with a unique approach of reinvesting revenue from our shop and services back into the provision of therapy, making it more affordable.
- Holistic Approach: We offer a range of supports under one roof, from occupational and speech therapy to educational and developmental resources for children with a variety of additional needs.
- Family-Centred Care: Our focus extends beyond the child to include empowering and educating families, ensuring they have the tools and support necessary to foster development at home.
- Nationwide Impact: Sensational Kids has a growing national presence, with Child Development centres in Kildare, Cork, Mayo, and Monaghan, serving children and families throughout Ireland.
- Special Interest in Sensory Integration with bespoke Sensory Motor Gym Facilities: Sensational Kids Child Development Centres provide specialist sensory motor gym facilities to meet the often complex sensory needs of the children we support.
- Our clinical team are supported and trained by our experts in sensory integration ensuring that children with sensory needs are receiving evidence based sensory therapy to Ayres Sensory Integration® international standards.
Our Story
Sensational Kids was founded in 2007 by Karen Leigh, a mother whose personal experience navigating Ireland’s fragmented and under-resourced therapy services for children with additional needs inspired her to create a better solution. When her own child faced long waiting lists for essential therapy services, Karen realised that many families in Ireland were in the same position, unable to access or afford the support their children desperately needed.
Determined to address this gap, Karen established Sensational Kids as a social enterprise and charity with a mission to provide affordable, accessible, and high-quality therapy services.
Starting from a single centre in Kildare, Sensational Kids has since grown into a national organisation, with four Child Development Centres across Ireland serving thousands of children.
Karen’s vision remains at the heart of Sensational Kids: ensuring that every child has the opportunity to reach their full potential, regardless of financial or geographic barriers.
Making a Difference
- Over 10,000 children have been supported with individual therapy supports and assessments by Sensational Kids over the past 16 years.
- To date more than €3 million in savings has been delivered to families through Sensational Kids’ subsidised therapy fees.
- Evidence Based, Proven Outcomes: A recent, independent program evaluation of the outcomes achieved by children benefitting from therapies at Sensational Kids, showed outcomes consistently above “clinically significant change,” demonstrating the profound positive changes achieved in a child’s developmental progression at Sensational Kids.
Child Development Centres
- KILDARE: Sensational Kids, Unit C2 Kildare, Business Park, Melitta Road, Kildare Town R51 WP02 Phone 045 520900. Email Info@sensationalkids.ie Open Monday – Friday
- MAYO: Sensational Kids, Lakeside Retail Park, Claremorris, Co Mayo, F12 P2H9 Phone 094 9357005, Email: Claremorris@sensationalkids.ie Open Monday – Friday
- WEST CORK: Sensational Kids, 2nd Floor, Building G, West Cork Technology Park Clonakilty, Co Cork, P85 VF62 Phone 023 887 8208 Email: Clonakilty@sensationalkids.ie Open Monday – Friday
- MONAGHAN: Unit 8 Clones Business Technology Park, Clones, County Monaghan H23 P294 Phone 047 52671 Email Clones@sensationalkids.ie Open Monday – Friday
Our Vision
All children and adolescents in Ireland have access to timely and impactful therapeutic services.
Our Mission
Our mission is to transform the lives of children through therapy, toys and training.
Our Values
FAMILY CENTERED: It is more than just the child/ adolescents
INCLUSIVE: All children, all adolescents, all ages, all abilities
RESPECT: Everyone is equal and TRUST is key
FUN: Always finding time to smile and laugh.
PLAY: Play-based model to support therapeutic engagement
EXCELLENCE: Quality in everything we do
SOCIAL ENTERPRISE: The SK mission is the heart of everything we do
INNOVATION: Always looking at what could progress and be better
