One of the biggest differences you will notice between Odyssey House School and other schools is how learning occurs.
Odyssey House School provides for pupils in Key Stages 2, 3, 4 and 5 who need nurturing through their educational journey. The majority of our students have a primary diagnosis of autism with associated social, emotional, and mental health needs, for example:
- Those who are not thriving in their current educational placement
- Those with some mild behavioural difficulties
- Those who experince emotional based school avoidance
- Previously home-educated children
- Those with learning difficulties such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, and
developmental coordination disorder (dyspraxia).
Odyssey House is an independent school that gives its pupils specialist teaching and
therapeutic support tailored to suit their individual needs. At Odyssey House School pupils are in control of their education journey. They can either stay at the school until they are 18 years old, or they may choose to stay for a shorter period with the aim to move on to a school or college of their choice. At the very least, pupils will attend Odyssey House School for a minimum of one year based on regular in-depth reviews of their academic progress and personal development.
On entry to the school, the initial focus is to ensure that the pupil settles into the education routine and starts to build key attachments with staff. Assessment is central to the work of Odyssey House School. We use a range of initial assessments to determine the exact needs of pupils who will attend. Further assessments are made of pupils’ educational needs. These include academic assessments such as in numeracy and literacy as well as other assessments which consider the child’s personal development, social, and emotional well-being. This enables us to have a more rounded picture allowing us to build a bespoke package tailored to each pupil’s education journey to success. The initial and subsequent assessments including those by our subject experts, inform each pupil’s individual learning and support plan (Guiding Star) which, in turn, enables a challenging but relevant curriculum to be developed for them.
Parents are closely involved from the initial assessment right through to the pupil’s transfer from Odyssey House School. We believe the most successful outcomes for individuals are based on a strong partnership between parents and Odyssey House School staff, and close liaison with the receiving school/college/placement.
