About Us
Senstional Kids is an award-winning social enterprise
Today, 1 in 4 children in Ireland has a special educational need. This means that there are 420,000 children in Ireland who require additional support, adaptations or accommodations to meet their potential. Children who are autistic, dyslexic, dyspraxic or have Down syndrome, ADHD, sensory processing differences or developmental delays might require additional support or accommodations at home or at school. Identifying and supporting developmental differences at a young age will allow a child to truly realise their potential in all environments.
Sensational Kids is an award-winning social enterprise that has already changed the lives of over 10,000 children, saving their families over €3 million in therapy fees. We provide vital front-line therapeutic supports for children ensuring that they have access to this support when and where they need it.
With 80,000+ children on waiting lists for speech therapy and occupational therapy our services are a lifeline for families whose children would otherwise be waiting 3–4 years to access services and would lose the opportunity for timely support and better outcomes for their children.
Fundraising and earned income from Sensational Kids’ Child Development & Learning Store and training workshops help to subsidise our therapy services, so that we can bridge the gap between public and private therapy services, providing a practical, accessible, and affordable service for those in need.
Take a Look at what we do in our short videos
Sensational Kids is a high impact not-for-profit organisation delivering life-changing, accessible and affordable, timely interventions to 10,000+ children of all abilities over the last 10 years, saving their families over €2.5 million in therapy fees.
CEO, Karen Leigh is the founding member of Sensational Kids. Having experienced lengthy waiting lists and a lack of affordable and accessible occupational therapy services for her own children, Karen founded Sensational Kids in 2007, bridging the gap between public and private therapy services for children of all abilities.
Today Sensational Kids employs 30+ staff, including a highly skilled clinical team across our child development centres in Kildare, Mayo, Monaghan and West Cork, providing vital supports such as occupational therapy, speech & language therapy, play therapy and hippotherapy.
Sensational Kids is Ireland’s leading non-profit provider of affordable and accessible early intervention services for children with additional needs in Ireland.
What Makes Us Different?
We are passionate and compassionate providers of child development supports, focused on making a difference, and who believe that every child matters. By giving every child, the opportunity to avail of our therapy supports, we are giving them a chance to flourish, to know the joy of success and to believe that they too are worthy.
At Sensational Kids, our assessments identify your child’s strengths and uncover the root of their challenges, using a blend of standardised and non-standardised assessments guided by various theories and frameworks.
Our detailed reports connect the dots to help you understand your child’s needs and set clear functional goals for progress. Our playful, sensory-rich child development centres encourage your child’s development through activities tailored to their interests and needs.
As parents and carers, you are integral to the therapeutic process, combining your knowledge of your child with our clinical expertise. With specialised knowledge in areas like Sensory Integration, DIR Floortime and more, our dedicated clinicians empower you to move forward with confidence, inspired by our team’s in-depth knowledge in child development.
Our Solution
Experiencing these difficulties first-hand, our CEO & Founder Karen Leigh became frustrated with the lengthy waiting lists her family faced in Ireland, not to mention the €120 an hour fees they had to pay for private occupational therapy. Determined to make a difference, she set out to create an affordable and accessible service that families like hers could benefit from.
Established in 2007, Sensational Kids operates as a child development centre, providing three key offerings for children and their families;
- Subsidised therapy services for children in need of additional support
- Professional development training workshops for those working with children with special needs
- Access to a range of specially selected learning resources from our play, develop & learn store
- Collectively, these services are ensuring that the children benefiting from them can improve their skills and maximise their potential.
Our Impact
To date, Sensational Kids has directly supported 10,000+ children from all over Ireland through our child development centres in Leinster, Munster & Connacht. Thanks to the fantastic work of the entire team, these children are now being given the opportunity to excel.
With our online store and retail shop helping to subsidise our services, Sensational Kids has already saved families in Ireland over €2.5 million in therapy fees alone, providing a practical, accessible, and affordable service for those in need.
Each year 500+ professionals benefit from upskilling through our range of professional development training workshops. Identifying and treating these difficulties at a young age will give a child a much better quality of life, but with lengthy public waiting lists, often the only alternative for families is expensive private sector care.
Sensational Kids caters to a wide range of sectors including
- Timely therapy intervention for children with additional needs, with and without a diagnosis (all abilities)
- Professional development training for those who work with children with additional needs
- Access to learning resources for organizations in education, and clinical service provision, child development, professionals, individuals, and educators
The services we provide:
- Educational Psychological Assessment and Diagnosis
- Occupational Therapy Assessment and Intervention
- Speech and Language Therapy
- Play Therapy – Psychotherapy, delivered through play for children
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
