• Peggy Murphy (Principal) and Karen Robinson-Jones (Assistant Head & IQM Lead) from Five Acre Wood School.
Five Acre Wood is the largest special school in Great Britain and caters for children and young people aged 3-19 with Profound, Severe and Complex Needs, including Autism, from Maidstone and the surrounding area. Five Acre Wood has recently been accoladed with the IQM National Inclusion Champion Award.
Pupils have individual pathways through the school which are carefully designed to support their journey towards independence and employment. They have six learning approaches running across the school to ensure that pupils can access the curriculum through the most appropriate teaching and learning provision and within a carefully crafted learning environment. There is an organic approach to this, changing with the needs of the children.
There are no ceilings high enough in terms of the aspirations staff have for the children at Five Acre Wood. It is a school which takes risks and will find ways to overcome obstacles if it means that they can improve or enrich the provision in place for their students.
They have a wonderful on-site farm and horticultural provision, and have acquired a disused railway carriage to convert into a training facility for hospitality and catering and there are plans afoot to convert an old aeroplane into a library! They have taken over Maidstone Radio Station and have reached number 13 in the iTunes charts. The school has satellite provision in local secondary and primary schools which facilitates outreach work with mainstream staff. The school has extended their outreach work globally, supporting a school in Pakistan with their Autism Curriculum.