Sarah Maslen (she/her), Founder and CEO of Undivided Training and Consultancy, spent 13 years working in a State Boarding School. In 2014 she became acutely aware of the homophobia, biphobia and transphobia within the school she worked in and also in other academic settings. Not only was this having a worrying impact on the pupils but she herself felt unsafe to “come out” in the environment; and she was not alone.
Consequently, Undivided was born! Originally Sarah attended training and spoke with pupils and teachers in the area. From this consultation she built a library of resources aimed at the education sector. This included assemblies, lesson plans, policy guidance, staff training and more and over the years this has been adapted, updated and has grown substantially.
Undivided grew rapidly, delivering this much needed content to schools, however the need for further provision across other sectors become palpable. This led to Sarah speaking at and leading conferences for anyone who worked with young people whilst also setting up direct support for LGBTQ+ Young People as well as their families themselves. This provision of support included groups within schools but one of her highlights was being responsible for a Youth Ambassadors Conference which connected and empowered young people from across Surrey (where she was based at the time). In 2020 Sarah moved home to South Wales with her children and due to the pandemic and relocation Undivided took a back seat until 2021 when she started to promote it again and delivered several training sessions in Carmarthenshire, Swansea and beyond!
Utilising a holistic approach based on personal and professional experiences as well as consultation with stakeholders, connections and networks, Undivided offers bespoke packages surrounding LGBTQIA+ inclusion, welfare and awareness.