Meet Gillian Martin

About Me

Throughout my career, I've been interested in helping people move beyond crisis management towards understanding what people are trying to tell us through Behavioural Expressions of Need. Whether I'm working with a school team, a healthcare service or a family group, my goal is to bring clarity to complex situations and identify practical ways forward.

For over 25 years, I have used behavioural science to support individuals, families, and organisations across Ireland, the UK, and the USA. Rooted primarily in healthcare, my work focuses on supporting neurodiverse individuals and people with intellectual disabilities. At the centre of everything I do is a commitment to Human Rights-Based Approaches. I believe behavior is a powerful expression of need, and my job is to help you meet that need with compassion, respect, and clinical precision.

I believe the people closest to a challenge are often best placed to solve it when they're given the right support, knowledge and confidence. So beyond direct support, I am deeply committed to the well-being of the entire Circle of Support - the families, clinicians, and social care teams who support and love those needing assistance. I created Soiléir to help these teams look at challenges with fresh eyes and build practical, tailored solutions that work for their unique situations. I know that many people seeking support are already working hard and doing their best. My role is to help make sense of complex situations and identify practical next steps.

My Approach to Learning

Whether delivering a workshop online or collaborating in person, my facilitation style is flexible, adaptive, and highly interactive. Rather than lecturing from a rigid script, I design sessions that respond directly to the real-world needs of the room on the day. My practice is driven by four core values: respect, curiosity, equality, and integrity.

I’m also passionate about helping to shape the next generation of practitioners in Ireland. I serve as an Adjunct Associate Professor at University College Dublin (UCD) and lecture on the MSc in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) at both Trinity College Dublin (TCD) and the National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG).