Welcome to the Rainbow Centre, a purpose built resource base, here at the Dedworth Campus.  We opened our doors in September 2021 and we are incredibly proud to have a shared space for Dedworth Middle School and Dedworth Green First School, to ensure that children with autism can be fully included in all aspects of school life.

What does a day look like in the Rainbow Centre?

Within each mainstream class on campus, from Reception to Year 8, we work with the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead to be able to allocate places in the Rainbow Centre, with a maximum of 8 students on roll in the Centre.  All of our students have EHCPs and a formal diagnosis of Autism.  The children who are part of the Rainbow Centre are fully included in the mainstream class, spending around 50% of the time in the Centre and 50% of the time with their mainstream peers.  The children are taught by specialist staff in the Rainbow Centre, receiving tailored interventions to meet their individual needs.

The number of additional staff in the classroom depends on the level of need and the number of children with EHC plans as these can vary. All staff have training and experience in working with pupils with autism and work flexibly across a range of children supporting their individual needs in order to achieve the outcomes set in their EHC plans. Our main aim is to develop independence in children and to avoid the highly dependent relationships that can occur when a child spends all of their time at school being supported by the same TA.

For most children within the resource base, they will spend the majority of time in the mainstream class learning alongside their peers. The Early Years and National Curriculum is differentiated and adapted to meet the children’s needs and ensure they can make progress in all areas. In class, teachers and teaching assistants use visual, auditory and kinaesthetic resources to enhance learning. Turn-taking, social interaction and other social skills are embedded in mainstream teaching, as well as being a focus for small groups, as this is often an area of difficulty for a lot of children.

Sensory Room

Children will share playtimes, lunch and teaching with their mainstream peers, as well as having opportunities to work on a one-to-one or a small group with the specialist teachers in the Rainbow Centre . Children will also benefit from the support from Speech and Language Therapists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and Educational Psychologists, and this will depend on the support package outlined in their individual EHCP.  We also have a sensory room which is available for our students to access to develop their calming down strategies when needed.

For more information about the Rainbow Centre or to arrange a visit, please contact Mrs Heffer and Mrs Burden, Lead Teachers and SENDCos of the Rainbow Centre kheffer@dedworthmiddle.co.uk  cburden@dedworthmiddle.co.uk

Vacancies

For Vacancies, please see attached documents listed.