Dawn House School

I CAN's Dawn House School provides intensive and specialist support for children and young people aged 5 -19 years who have severe speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) which prevent them from realising their full potential intellectually, academically and socially. Pupils receive the integrated therapy and education that they need, ensuring they receive full access to the national curriculum (pre 16) and an enriched curriculum that supports the transition to adulthood  (post 16).

Places at Dawn House School are largely funded via Local Authorities, but payment by families will be considered.

Please use the menu on the left hand side of the page to navigate through the site. Dawn House School parents can access Schoolgates here.

Visits by Parents

Dawn House School welcomes arranged visits by parents and carers who wish to learn more about the work of the school and whether it could meet the needs of their child. Visits usually last between one and one and a half hours and can be arranged directly with the school using the contact details below.

Visits by Professionals

Dawn House School welcomes visits from local authority representatives and professionals who have specific interest or involvement with children or young people with SLCN. The I CAN Centre at Dawn House School: Learning through practice programme is a “tailor made” CPD service for professionals working with youngsters with Speech, Language and Communication Needs.

Ofsted Inspections

Dawn House School underwent an Ofsted inspection in January 2008. The report praises Dawn House Specialist School for its outstanding curriculum, outstanding personal development and well – being and outstanding care guidance and support.  The school goes to great lengths to ensure pupils safety and wellbeing. They recognise that pupils throughout the school achieve well because of the good quality of teaching and learning and the consistent attention that is paid to each pupil’s communication and interaction needs.

They say "Pupils’ self-confidence soars in the climate of praise and encouragement. Dawn House is entirely committed to enabling every pupil to be a fulfilled and valued member of society. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. Together with their good achievement in key areas, this contributes significantly to preparing pupils exceptionally well for the next stage in their lives.”

Download the latest Jan '08 Ofsted Inspection report.

The school's residential care was also inspected in November 2007 and received an outstanding review.

Download the latest March '09 Ofsted Residential Care Report.

Outreach

Dawn House's Outreach service can provide independent assessment, audit, advice and guidance for statutory, voluntary and commercial sectors. It focuses on developing the communication skills of all children and ensures those finding communication hard have the expert help they need.
Find out more.

A Specialist School for Communication and Interaction

Dawn House School was awarded  Specialist School  Status by the DCSF in January 2007. Dawn House is one of 23  establishments that will specialise in the ‘communication and interaction’ part of the SEN Code of Practice. The school has responsibility within the specialist status to focus on ensuring high attainment for its pupils and additionally working with 5 partner schools and a number of community organisations  to help them develop their provision of communication and interaction.

Further Education

The Further Education Department (FE) at Dawn House provides education and therapy for 25 young people in a separate centre on the school site.  FE students choose from three pathways:
On pathway 1 students  are supported by Dawn House staff to access an academic or vocational course at a mainstream college.  Students can choose a suitable course from the full range on offer at the college.
On pathway 2, students access vocational qualifications through a work placement , which is supported by staff from Dawn House
Pathway three offers a small number of vocational courses on the Dawn House Site.
In addition, all students, whichever pathway they are following access literacy , numeracy and lifeskills work at the school.
Our model  for Speech language and other therapies continues throughout the FE provision.
Students can access the FE department for one to three years and many young people then move successfully on to their local mainstream FE provision, to higher education or to employment.

Prospectus

If you are want to find out more about Dawn House School and the work we do, download the Spring 2010 Prospectus or contact us using the details below.