About Us

acornABA was founded by Sarah Walker, a board certified behaviour analyst based in the Midlands. 

I am passionate about behaviour analysis and it’s application to educating children on the autism spectrum. I have worked in the field for the last 8 years and have a wealth of experience across different settings.  I embarked on my ABA career initially as an ABA Tutor on home based programmes whilst studying for my undergraduate degree.  Later I went on to train as a behaviour analyst with a well-known ABA School in Surrey. 

After completing my Masters degree in ABA with Nicholls State University in Louisiana and having achieved board certified status, I embarked on my next adventure! In September 2015, I was part of the team of like-minded ABA practitioners appointed by the parent founders to help open and run the the UK's first state ABA free school.

Over my professional career I have had some fantastic opportunities to work with highly respected behaviour analysts.  I have had opportunities to expand my knowledge of ABA in the United States where I spent one month working across home, public schools, and specialist ABA settings. I have also presented my research at two state conferences. 

I now provide ABA instruction and consultancy across the UK, and I am a provider for ABA training for both parents and aspiring tutors.  As a board certified behaviour analyst,  I am able to provide supervision to BCaBA’s, those seeking supervision hours towards their BCBA accreditation and those requiring supervision for the RBT credential. 

Training and professional development

In addition to my academic training and my BCBA certification, I have undertaken professional training in the following;

• Makaton 
• PECS
• PEAK by Mark Dixon
• AIM by Mark Dixon and Dana Paliliunas
• Essentials for Living by Patrick McGreevy
• Social Thinking by Michelle Winner Garcia

I have attended workshops and courses in many, many topics, some of the most notable include;

• Recent advances in the assessment and treatment of challenging behaviour (hosted by UK SBA)
• Ethical considerations in schools (hosted by Jigsaw Trust)
• Clinical considerations for crisis behaviour 
• Precision teaching (hosted by SEABA)
• Verbal Behaviour (hosted by Carbone Clinic, London) 
• Essentials of Organisational behaviour management (hosted by FIT)
• Understanding the SEN process and tribunal framework (hosted by UK SBA)