Thames Valley School is a maintained day specialist school for autistic young people aged between 5 and 16 years, who have an EHCP. The Hill Brow site is specifically tailored for EYFS pupils and Key Stage 3 students. All pupils are referred by their local authority and they must have an Education, Health and Care Plan which states they have a diagnosis of Autism. Pupils may have additional diagnoses, such as, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or social, emotional and mental health needs. Pupils may also have associated communication and interaction, as well as sensory, processing or physical needs.

Alongside this, members of staff and our Trans Disciplinary Team work collaboratively with families and other professionals to assess and understand our pupils’ emerging needs through embedded therapeutic provision. Our Hill Brow site mirrors the curriculum and therapeutic approaches of the main school, ensuring a seamless provision across both sites.

Pupils access the National Curriculum, which is suitably adapted and paced, acknowledging that some pupils require the adaptations made at Thames Valley School in order to access and engage with learning opportunities.

Our pupils work at broadly age-related levels of attainment and we anticipate that they will gain a range of qualifications, including GCSEs and Level 2 Qualifications.

Thames Valley School has been specially designed to meet the specific needs of our autistic pupils. The environment and building have been designed to be deliberately considerate of our children’s sensory sensitivities, including muted colours, wide corridors and access to side rooms and quiet areas.

Pupils have access to resources and adaptations they require to support their needs as stipulated in their EHCPs, or as recommended by professionals i.e. speech and language or occupational therapists. This includes but is not limited to alternative methods of recording, coloured overlays and visual aids.

We make reasonable adjustments to our curriculum to ensure all pupils are able to access their learning opportunities, for example, by grouping, 1:1 work, teaching style, content of the lesson, adapting resources, giving processing time, pre-teaching of key vocabulary and consideration of ways information is presented (verbal and visual).

The Hill Brow site has been specifically designed with the sensory and developmental needs of EYFS and Key Stage 3 pupils in mind. The EYFS cohort has access to a separate, tailored outdoor space and specialized facilities, including sensory and quiet areas. The curriculum at Hill Brow mirrors that of the Tilehurst site, with additional adjustments for younger children. All pupils have access to resources stipulated in their EHCPs, and staff use adapted teaching methods and resources to ensure pupils can access the learning environment successfully.