New Sheffield school for children with autism to open this year

Discovery Academy will open its doors on September 1 after construction is completed in May 2022 on Park Grange Road, Norfolk Park.

Nexus Multi Academy Trust – which has 11 academies across South Yorkshire – will run the school for Sheffield children aged seven to 16 diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder and related social, emotional and mental health needs.

Warren Carratt, Nexus chief executive, said: “We are so proud and privileged to be opening our new, ‘free’ special school. The successful completion of this project is testament to the hard work of colleagues from Sheffield City Council, Tilbury Douglas, Nexus MAT and the Department for Education.

“The site will give pupils and families the stellar learning environment that they deserve, and we will ensure that the curriculum offer is the best it can be.

“Discovery Academy will be a centre of excellence and we will ensure we fulfil the Nexus MAT vision of learning together, to be the best we can be every single day. The school has a state of the art building and we have appointed a first class teaching team. Combined, this will make such a positive impact on the learning of the pupils we serve. This new special school will make an immeasurable difference to the lives of local families. We are beyond excited to be opening it for them.”

It has been funded by the government’s Free School programme.

The school will start with 60 pupils on its roll in September and aims to accommodate around 80 pupils within the next couple of years.

Steve Booth, Nexus director and chair of the Free School Project Board, said: “I have been involved in this project from its inception and it’s been a positive experience throughout.

“We wouldn’t be anywhere near this point without strong partnership working with our colleagues at the council and the DfE. This entire project brings some much-needed new special school places to Sheffield. The building is breath-taking and we cannot wait for it to be finished so we can move in and bring pupils onto the Discovery roll.

“The Trust has an incredibly strong track record of managing special schools and we are absolutely sure that Discovery will be a huge success story for Nexus MAT and our Sheffield communities.”

What is the school’s ethos?

On its website, the academy says it will embody an ethos whereby ‘kindness, care and self-belief are the foundations to learning’.

It added: “Students thrive in an immersive learning environment where they own and progress the world around them to ensure that learning never stops.

“Student happiness is a priority to us and we realise that all our students have experienced challenges along their journey so far. Staff expertly adapt learning to ensure students are engaged in all their learning and often don’t realise they are learning at all.

“Learning takes place when students feel safe, stimulated and secure. In this, the play-based approach of challenged based learning ensures that learning takes into account stages of development for every student.”

Building the school was delayed by a year due to Covid.