Surrey Autism Outreach service

Autism Outreach for Schools is a service commissioned by Surrey County Council and delivered by staff based at some of Surrey's specialist provisions.

They support schools to meet the needs of their autistic and neuro-diverse pupils, or those undiagnosed but struggling in similar areas.

Autism Outreach promotes inclusive whole school practise (universal support), as well as supporting staff working with individual pupils (targeted support).

What do Autism Outreach do?

Universal Support

  • Provide advice and information over the phone, or by email.
  • Offer meetings and learning walks to discuss neuro-diversity friendly environments.
  • Provide training for school staff, either held centrally at provider schools or at host schools in a staff meeting or INSET.
  • Model of good practice, such as demonstrating the use of a particular strategy.
  • Support schools who are conducting SEN reviews or audits.
  • Work with county teams such as the All-Age Autism Strategy Group, to ensure there is a strong voice for autism in Surrey.
  • Provide a range of resources and information sheets, along with up-to-date signposting to other sources.

Targeted Support

  • Observation of pupils in their classroom, keeping things as 'normal' as possible. For some pupils, particularly those in secondary school, it is appropriate to have a chat with our staff member directly.
  • Meet with school staff and parents to discuss concerns and strategies to help.
  • Provide written reports which outline observations, form a record of discussions held and descriptions of the strategies we recommend.
  • Arrange follow-up appointments, dependent on the level of need. These may be for individual pupils or part of a clinic-style visit to check up on how things are going and give general support to the school.

Who is eligible for Targeted Autism Outreach?

The Autism Outreach for Schools service is free to all Surrey County Council maintained schools and academies. Independent/ non-maintained schools and those outside the Surrey borders can pay to access services on a per-visit basis.

Most of the pupils that service supports will have a diagnosis of autism, but some may not. Referral is still appropriate for pupils with similar needs, or those who are awaiting diagnosis.

A child/young person does not have to have an Education Health and Care plan (EHCP) to access this service.

Referrals

Targeted referrals are made through the school that the child attends. School staff can refer pupils, with parental permission.

Parents and others who wish for the service to be provided for a child should approach the child's school and ask them to make the request. Parents cannot refer on their child's behalf and pupils cannot self-refer to this service.

After referral, there is usually a wait of around six weeks to access this service, although there may be some flexibility for urgent cases.

Early Years STEPS

STEPS is run in collaboration between the Early Years SEND team and Autism Outreach for Schools, to provide support for parents, for settings and for the transition into school for children displaying difficulties with social communication. STEPS is delivered by outreach team members based at Freemantles School.

Further details including how to making a referral to Steps can be found on the referral section of the Graduated Response Early Years section of the Local Offer.

Additional information

For more information about Autism Outreach, our training opportunities and to see our banks of resources, visit the Autism Outreach for Schools website.


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