Raising Autism Awareness in Schools

Last week, New Directions Education hosted Caedraw Primary school for their Erasmus event at one of our regional offices based in Merthyr Tydfil.

The event saw teaching professionals attend from all over Europe; Latvia, Iceland, Slovakia and Estonia. The aim was to share knowledge on how to raise awareness of autism in schools as part of their Erasmus programme.

The day began with an introduction by Jill Watkins, the Ex-Head Teacher of Caedraw Primary School and now the ALN Lead Officer for Merthyr Tydfil County Council in which she talked about Additional Learning Needs within a school setting and the fantastic Learning Resource Base’s that Caedraw Primary School has on site.

Chris Condon, Learning Resource Base Leader at Caedraw Primary School, said:

Our work is to educate the parents as well as the children on autism. We are helping families to understand autism and how they can support their children to reach their full potential, by showing encouragement, understanding and respect.

Caedraw Primary School works very closely with the National ASD Development Team. This Welsh government funded programme is accessed across the world in many different countries as part of the Erasmus programme to exchange experiences and to increase autism awareness across the globe.

The National ASD Team works with schools to make their environment autism friendly. They do this by helping to change the culture of the school, educating not only the teachers but all support staff and pupils.

It is estimated that ASD affects 1 in 100 people. The National ASD Team provides schools with guides, advice and the tools they need to understand the different elements in a school day that can affect a child with autism.

To learn more about how your school can join the Welsh programme to become an autism aware school; read the free online package here: www.asdinfowales.co.uk

New Directions Education are always delighted to be part of a worthwhile programme and to help facilitate such an important and productive meeting.

If your school requires a meeting space and you are based near Merthyr Tydfil, call one of our friendly team now on: 01685 848278, to discuss your requirements.