The accreditation is the highest quality assurance standard for autism-specific services. Following a rigorous multi-day assessment, the school was granted the Advanced tier by the assessment committee, which applauded its “exceptional understanding of individual communication profiles”, “significant strengths in sensory and emotional support”, and “strong relationships“ with students and their families. During the evaluation process, students described staff as highly supportive and expressed a strong sense of belonging, while parents noted exceptional engagement between the school and families and a “truly inclusive environment”.
Stephanie Smith, Head of the Cavendish School and Executive Director of SEND at Eastern Learning Alliance, the academy trust of 11 schools and Colleges, said: “This year is our fifth anniversary and to be recognised by the National Autistic Society with the highest level of accreditation we can achieve makes it even more special. However, our greatest measure of success remains in seeing our students develop into emotionally and socially confident young people who achieve their aspirations. With support from the National Autistic Society, we look forward to continuing to enhance our provision and share our learnings with our wider community to continue to help autistic children and young people thrive.”
To learn more about the school’s approach to autism education, read its whitepaper, “Five years of learning through alignment: reflections on curriculum, environment and relationships in autism education”: https://thecavendishschool.org.uk/news/five-years-of-learning-through-alignment
