Admissions
Avalon School is a secondary Special School for young people in Years 11 - 14 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). All students who attend Avalon School have complex learning needs and require a specialist setting to help them learn and achieve.
The EHCP is an assessment document that guides the education system in how best to meet the needs of the individual young person.
Before an EHCP is considered, there will be a number of steps which will have been put in place by your child's school in consultation with you.
Remaining in mainstream is beneficial for most children and young people. However, for a small percentage of school aged children (approximately 2%), a Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) school will better meet their needs.
For children and young people who are in the process of receiving an EHCP the county council will allocate a reviewing officer. It is often the officer who makes the approach to the school by preparing documents and information on which the school can make their decision about offering a place. The process for the school is outlined below:
What happens if we are over-subscribed:
- Somerset Council commission places within each of our schools. This figure can change each year but remains within an agreed margin.
- If we have already achieved the agreed place number and other children or young people are looking for places, we are able to agree places in negotiation with the county council at casework panel. The strongest reason to cap numbers within our schools would be the ability to keep every child safe, given the constraints of the buildings or the make-up of the group of students. Obviously, the main benefit of being in a special school is specialist support and intervention, reduced class size and increased access to teachers and specialist teaching assistants. If this is compromised, then we may defer accepting your child until a time when other children leave, and we have capacity to agree the place. For example, we may be asked to consider your child for a place in May but have no places available until September.
We assess every request based on:
- Whether your child would have a friendship group at school – are there other children who are learning in the same way?
- Whether your child will be safe at our school.
- Whether your child is developing typically in terms of academic attainment.
- Sometimes it may be that your child could remain in their local school with their friends but receive support from a local Outreach Team.
Initial Enquiry
Please use the link below to make an enquiry about a school place here at Avalon. We will contact you after you have made an initial enquiry and arrange a tour of the school for you and your young person, these take place on the first Friday of every month at 15:30 with our Head of School, Amy Norris.
https://forms.office.com/e/HGpdSTNn5m
Transition
Once your child has been allocated a place at Avalon School by the Local Authority, we will begin the transition process for your child.
We may hold a transition meeting if, for example, there are a number of professionals involved with your child. This will ensure that all the relevant and important information is shared with key staff at Avalon School.
Visit to current setting.
Staff may make a visit to see your child in their current setting or school. If this is not possible, they may arrange a home visit. These visits enable us to collect all relevant information about how your child learns, interacts and gain a better understanding of their strengths and needs.
Visits to Avalon
We hold regular parent carer coffee afternoons for parent carers and we strongly encourage you to attend one of these events. These ensure that you have the opportunity to see the school and facilities, meet key staff and ask any questions. These events also enable you to meet other parents and carers.
Transport
Some children and young people who attend Avalon School are entitled to transport between home and school. This is in accordance with Somerset Council Transport Policy. This may involve specialist transport arrangements for some children. Please see the link below for more information:
Please see Somerset Council website for more information about the Local Offer: