Outreach Services

    • Amwell View School is the County selected special school offering Outreach provision to all mainstream schools within DSPL 3 (covering: Bishops Stortford, Sawbridgeworth, Buntingford, Watton-at-Stone, Hertford and Ware and all surrounding villages). The service currently supports over 50 mainstream settings.
    • The Outreach service helps to ensure that pupils with any additional needs, can remain in their local mainstream school wherever possible. Pupils do not need a specific diagnosis to access the Outreach service.
    • The Outreach service offers mainstream Primary and Secondary schools and Early Years providers, support and assistance with individual pupil needs, whole class support or whole school advice and training.
    • Amwell View Outreach Service is a bespoke service offered to mainstream schools in the area.
    • To access the Outreach Service, please complete the Initial Referral Form and return to Alison Lindsell (Outreach Manager) either by post or email: alison.lindsell@amwell.herts.sch.uk Initial Referral form
    Primary Outreach

    Alison Lindsell

    I have been a Special Educational Needs teacher at Amwell View School and Specialist Sports College since 2005 and within this time, have taught across all age groups from 2 to 19 years old. I have attended and completed many training programmes to support and extend my knowledge and understanding of Special Educational Needs including Autism, Communication Development, SLCN, SPLD, PECS, Makaton and Attachment Theory.

    I have been an ELKLAN Lead tutor for the past 10 years and a Hertfordshire STEPS tutor for the past 8 years. I am also the lead Induction tutor for all new staff at Amwell View.

    I took over as Outreach Manager in 2008 and have continued to grow the service into what it is today.

    The Outreach Team now consists of a Primary Outreach Lead, Secondary Outreach Lead (Shelia Kitchen) and DSPL3 Home Support Worker (Alison Whenman). By developing this team of professionals, we can now ensure consistent advice and support across environments and plan for a smooth transition from Primary to Secondary Education for pupils with additional needs.

    The primary role of the Outreach Service is to support pupils with additional needs, to access education in their mainstream settings. This could take the form of observation and classroom support, staff training and development, whole school training and development, providing resources and assisting with accurate planning and assessment to meet the individual needs of each pupil.

    Alongside individual work with pupils in mainstream settings, I also write and deliver a wide range of training sessions for whole staff groups. These include workshop sessions on Communication, Autism, ADHD, Sensory Integration, Adaptive Practice, Inclusion, Attachment and Trauma, Positive Behaviour Management and Classroom Practice. There is also a session aimed at Year 5 and 6 pupils to aid their understanding of Autism and ADHD.

    Outreach in schools remains a bespoke service that can be tailored to meet the needs of each individual school or pupil.

    As Outreach Lead, I also attend various County run panel meetings, acting as a professional adviser for DSPL3, including Local High Needs Funding, Complex Case Review and SENDSAS Triage.

    Further to this work, I have recently been involved in the set-up and development of Specialist Provision class groups within two of our mainstream nursery settings and four of our local mainstream primary schools. This exciting new development will ensure that SLD pupils waiting for Specialist School places, will have access to a carefully planned and developmentally appropriate curriculum, whilst remaining in an adapted educational environment.

    Secondary Outreach

    Sheila Kitchen

    I have been teaching for over 30 years and I still remember my first teaching post in a mainstream class and how interested and eager I was to learn more about pupils needing extra support. My enthusiasm for supporting special needs continues today.

    I continued teaching a few more years in mainstream before returning to university to gain a degree in special education. This period of study provided me with a set of educational strategies I still use today in my teaching journey. My teaching career led me to special schools in both Essex and Hertfordshire and I have experienced a wide range of special needs, each year adding to my strategy use and understanding of the need for individual pupils.

    I have tremendous amount of experience with pupils with autism, learning difficulties, ADHD, epilepsy, dyspraxia, anxiety, trauma and other mental health issues. I see the impact each of these conditions can have on a pupil and fully appreciate working with staff at primary, middle and secondary schools to meet the needs of the young person needing intervention. My professional development continues as I attend webinars focused on autism, mental health, ADHD and trauma.

    Our Outreach Team at Amwell View work closely together to deliver a range of presentations - this recently includes University of Hertfordshire teachers in years 1, 2 and 3 of the teaching degree, Addenbrookes children's hospital nursing and nursing practitioner teams and both primary and secondary schools - on autism, attachment and trauma, using visual systems and relaxation techniques to incorporate in lessons.

    I am a cog in the wheel of support offered to schools in the East Hertfordshire - ready to help in any way I can to advocate for special needs in all schools and support the staff to achieve it.

    Recent Feedback from schools
    • "The referral process is quick and efficient.  The advice we receive from Amwell View is the most useful advice we receive from any professional.  We received lots of excellent ideas that we can implement at school."
    • "The service that we receive from Amwell View is always fantastic.  They have a depth of knowledge and are always able to give us practical ideas that engage the children and move them on."
    • "Very quick response to emails.  Amwell View Outreach visit schools within a couple of weeks of initial query which is excellent.  The service has been extremely valuable to our school and I would recommend all schools to request support."

    The leadership team has maintained the outstanding quality of education provided by the school since the last inspection.

    You and your staff have the very highest aspirations for the children and young people who attend your school.
    Ofsted Outstanding 2018