Autism outreach support for schools

How to ask for outreach support for mainstream schools.

The Autism Outreach Offer is a joint offer from Essex County Council and four special schools across Essex. The offer is intended to increase the support for mainstream schools to meet the needs of their Autistic young people by developing the expertise and confidence of staff and to ensure high quality provision is in place. 

"Autism Outreach is supporting inclusion in partnership for our Autistic learners".

You can download the autism outreach information leaflet for parents and carers here

Who can request Autism Outreach?

Autism outreach can be requested by schools who need support to adapt provision and enable flexible learning within a mainstream environment.  This service is appropriate if a young person (YP) is on a Neuro developmental pathway or has an Autism diagnosis and is also available to those with a co occurring condition for example, ADHD, anxiety or OCD. Support will also be offered to those who have a learning need, if barriers to their learning is because of their autistic needs. If, however, the YP has a severe learning need with their autism the request should be referred to the ESSET outreach offer.

What Autism Outreach Offer can provide:

  • Individual Provision Support
    • Either for an individual, or a group within a class, to develop the planning and provision to enable outcomes for autistic learners
  • Coaching of Interventions, such as;
    • Attention Autism
    • PECS
    • TEACCH
    • Supporting sensory strategies
    • Zones of regulation
    • Personalised Planning
    • Visuals
  • Sharing best practice
    • InReach within the special school
    • Supporting schools within a cluster/MAT
    • Signposting to schools previously worked with or known for good practice

What Outreach is not:

  • Working with a child or young person in isolation
  • Working within the class or school without the requesting school being involved
  • Crisis management
    • Requesting support when all else fails
    • Outreach should be used as an early intervention support once ordinarily available has been fully implemented
  • It isn’t a ‘tick box’ before moving the child or young person out into another provision

Make a request

Any school can make a request for outreach. This does not have to be made through your Inclusion Partner; however, schools will be asked to evidence what support they may have had previously and what impact any changes implemented has had. The request forms can be downloaded below:

Contact your nearest school from the list, to request outreach support:

Mid Essex

The Hawthorns School
Telephone: 01245 207 607
Email: admin@thehawthornsschool.com 
School: The Hawthorns School on the ECC SEND website

North East Essex

Market Field School
Telephone: 01206 825 195
Email: admin@marketfield.essex.sch.uk 
School: Market Field School and College on the ECC SEND website

South Essex

Castledon School
Telephone: 01268 761 252
Email: outreach@castledon.org 
Schools: Castledon School on the ECC SEND website

West Essex

Oak View School
Telephone: 0208 508 4293 ext 7
Email: jblythin@oakview.efspt.org 
School: Oak View School on the ECC SEND website

Once your request has been received, the provider will make initial contact via telephone or email within two working days. The provider with discuss your needs and an initial visit will be booked with one working calendar month.

Once you have received support, you will be asked to complete an evaluation of the outreach you have received and the impact it has made.