About us

Gretton School welcomes autistic children and young people aged from 5—19years old, as weekly boarders or as day students.

Every student at Gretton has a diagnosis of autism with the ability to achieve at high levels and every student is different.

As autism specialists, we understand that consistent daily routines and staffing helps to keep anxiety at a minimum and ensures that our students feel safe and confident in their surroundings.

We have a high staff to student ratio and classes are small and personal – we know each of our students really well and employ the best strategies to support them in their everyday school life.

A day in the life of a residential support member

Why work for us

• Competitive Salaries
• Full training provided
• Opportunities for NQTs
• Continuing professional development
• Pension scheme
• Parking on site
• Breakfast & Lunch provided
• Access to mental health support
• Staff well being team organise staff social occasions
• Gifts at Christmas and end of summer term
• Beautiful location
• Majority of positions are term time only
• Employee Assistance Programme - a gateway to Health, Mental Health and Wellbeing Services

Our ethos

Understanding, acceptance and timing

• The ethos
  We believe that autism is a different, not an impaired way of thinking, and understanding this is fundamental to our ethos. We accept the culture of autism and the individuality of every person with autism. We never make assumptions about our students but always listen to them.
• The Teaching of Concepts
  We teach concepts such as feelings in a structured way that enables our students to understand them and to link and apply their growing knowledge. As scenarios arise, we also teach concepts in context so that students learn to interpret situations and take responsibility for their actions and learning.
• Timing and Preparation
  A student with autism learns best when they are in the right frame of mind to do so, so we time our teaching carefully. We use incidents and experiences sensitively for learning and reflection. We recognise that we may need to defer teaching when a student’s feelings or senses are not overloaded. Staff work with each student individually to prepare them for learning, making sure that they fully understand what is expected of them.
• Holistic Learning
  We look at our students as whole people. We create a combined integrated plan for each student that spans their emotional, academic, social, physical and spiritual development, their therapeutic needs and their sensory profile. Every member of staff takes responsibility for making sure that the plans are applied every day.