Quest School continues to remain open and to make provision for our students, to the fullest extent possible, given the current restrictions.
Throughout the Covid-19 crisis, we have followed Government guidance at every stage, and have taken into consideration the following very important factors:
The needs of every pupil are considered on an individual basis, and in discussion with parents/carers to determine whether each child can continue to be safely cared for at home during this period
Prioritising school attendance for pupils whose parents are key workers, critical to the Covid-19 response effort.
Constantly adapting our daily practice, to implement social distancing measures to the fullest extent possible, notwithstanding the profile of our pupils means, in practice, there are significant challenges to achieving this.
Limiting the total number of pupils onsite each day, in order to help protect pupils and staff and to limit the risks of infection.
We would like to thank all our parents, pupils and staff for their continued support during this very challenging period of time.

Everyone at The Quest School would like to thank all of the essential workers for keeping the country going during these unprecedented times.  We hope everyone has a pleasant Bank Holiday weekend. #staysafe

From Tuesday 21st April 2020 onwards, we are continuing to implement our partial closure system. We are keeping parents informed of which days their children will be in school.
Parents must ONLY send their children in on the designated days.

In line with government advice, we are prioritising the children of Key-workers who are critical to the COVID-19 response. Many parents working in these sectors may be able to ensure their child is kept at home, and every child who can safely be cared for at home should be.

We would like to thank our staff and families for your on-going co-operation in these unprecedented times.

During this time, we would like to remind our parents about the best ways to help keep our pupils safe online.

To find out about keeping your child safe online, please visit our E-Safety tab on our main website (under information for parents) for training slides along with a “Click CEOP” button.  The Click CEOP button will take you straight to the Child Exploitation and Online Protection website for further information on how to report any concerns.  You will also find a link to the parent section of the “Thinkuknow” website.  This is is an education programme for online safety, recommended by the NSPCC.

We understand that this is an extremely worrying time because of the amount of uncertainty around the covid-19 virus. In order to support families of keyworkers we are committed to providing for these children whilst their parents are providing an essential and critical service. We will be opening for these pupils only in the Easter holidays.

In these unprecedented, strange and difficult times we wish to say a heartfelt thank you to our incredible staff and families for your on-going resilience and enthusiasm to provide some level of normality to our pupils.

The Government review for current restrictions is due to take place on the 13th April and we will inform ASAP after this date the plans for term 5.

Today is Autism awareness Day!

Autism is a complex developmental disability. It is considered to be a spectrum disorder, which means that the degree to which people are affected by it varies from mild to severe. Latest research indicates that autism affects approximately 1 in 100 people (approx half a million people in the UK).

Whilst the degree to which each person is impacted by autism may vary, there are common characteristics of an autistic spectrum disorder:

• impairment of verbal and non-verbal communication
• difficulties with developing social relationships
• lack of flexibility leading to repetitive or routine-bound behaviours
• impaired imaginative ability in play or creativity, for example, when writing
• sensory processing difficulties

People with autism sometimes also have additional co-existing conditions such as ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), dyslexia or dyspraxia.

Autism is a lifelong condition which affects people of every race, background and gender, although it is more prevalent amongst boys than girls. As yet, the causes of Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) remain unknown. As it is such a complex disorder, it is likely that there are multiple factors which involve both genetic and environmental triggers.

Just as the causes of autism remain unclear, it is also the case that there is as yet no ‘cure’ for autism. Research demonstrates that fewer than 10% of adults with autism have sufficient skills to enable them to live any form of independent life, and 60% of adults with autism will remain entirely dependent on others for all aspects of their adult lives.

We are excited to announce that one of our staff has just achieved her BCBA Qualification.  Congratulations Michelle Milam!  This entailed completing a Masters in ABA, gaining seventy five supervision hours and sitting a very tough exam.  A great achievement!!!

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)
On Tuesday 24th March 2020 we are implementing our partial closure system measures.
We are informing parents today by letter which days your children will be in school.
Parents must ONLY send their children in on the designated days.
We have prioritised the children of Keyworkers.

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)
You will all be aware of the announcement from Government about school closures. On Monday 23rd March 2020, we will be operating as normal and implementing a partial closure system from Tuesday 24th March 2020. We will be informing parents on Monday of which days their children will be able to attend. Keyworkers’ children will be prioritised.

On Friday, we participated in some fundraising for Sport Relief.  The pupils and staff wore sports clothes for a £1 donation.  They participated in a danceathon, played some sporty games and between them, over the course of the week ran over six miles!  Thank you to everyone for your generous donations!