What are you noticing?

Describe an everyday experience. Explore what might be happening, understand it in context and consider practical support.

Search in ordinary language

Prefer a few questions?

Support Finder helps you find a starting point in the encyclopaedia, one question at a time.

Inside every entry

Each entry begins with a question rather than a conclusion. Follow the whole journey, or go straight to the part you need.

01
Understand
Begin with a question, then build a clear picture of the presentation.
- Key question
- Overview
- What this might look like
02
See in context
Notice how age, setting and individual difference can change what you see.
- Developmental expression
- Strengths and differences
03
Plan carefully
Move from understanding towards support that is practical and humane.
- Top tips
- Barriers at school
- Careful planning
- Practical support principles
04
Go deeper
Follow relevant approaches and keep the evidence, limits and alternatives visible.
- Phoenix Atlas approaches
- Evidence and cautions
- Explanatory lenses

How the Phoenix Encyclopaedia approaches a presentation

We start with what is happening, not by fitting a young person to a label. Understanding should protect dignity and make better support possible.

01
Begin with the presentation.
Everyday observations are a valid place to start; a diagnostic label is not the price of entry.
02
Hold possibilities open.
One description may lead to several useful entries. A search term is a route, not a conclusion.
03
Keep each entry focused.
One clear presentation, concise support and connected pathways—rather than a long catch-all article.
04
See the whole young person.
Development, relationships, environment and strengths matter alongside difficulty.
05
Move towards humane support.
The aim is access, agency and participation, with evidence and caution kept in view.

The full collection

Browse 98 entries across 7 overlapping Phoenix domains and see how the whole collection is organised.