Curriculum
To discuss the Church Lawton Curriculum, please contact:
- Mrs Karen Woodall - office@churchlawtonschool.org.uk
To discuss the Church Lawton Schools exams and/or qualifications offer, please contact:
- Mr Ian Smith - office@churchlawtonschool.org.uk
An ambitious, rounded education for every child
We are a high-performing school, providing an exceptional education to all our children. We are here to provide academic excellence and an environment where all our pupils learn well.
We aim for our pupils to achieve in appropriate and different public examinations ranging from Unit Award Schemes to GCSEs and BTEC qualifications and working with our off-site partners to provide access to local Colleges and 6th Forms, to study a broad set of subjects and qualifications e.g. Level 3 BTEC’s, AS and A levels. We give equal attention to the things that students achieve and the things they struggle with.
We deliver the full National Curriculum throughout the school, starting with the Early Years Foundation Stage for our youngest children.
Your child will study at the level they are ready for, regardless of their age and we will draw on expertise from within the school and beyond to ensure that your child is always challenged to their full ability.
A complete education for life
At Church Lawton School, every student follows a broad and ambitious curriculum, with a timetable appropriate to their needs as an autistic learner. Our curriculum combines academic learning, personal development and practical life skills to prepare students for the opportunities and challenges of adult life.
We recognise each student’s strengths, interests and starting points. Through carefully sequenced teaching, appropriate adaptations and targeted support, we help students build their knowledge, develop confidence and become increasingly independent.
Students learn traditional academic subjects alongside the life skills they need to become confident young adults. Educational psychology, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy inform teaching and support, with specialist provision incorporated according to students’ assessed needs and Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).
We teach the subjects of the National Curriculum through practical, structured and accessible approaches. Our experience of teaching autistic children and young people enables us to adapt learning to different communication styles, sensory needs and levels of understanding. Small teaching groups and individual support help students participate, make progress and achieve well.
Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHE), Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and British values are important parts of our curriculum at every stage, taught in ways appropriate to students’ ages and understanding.
Our Quality of Life Framework embeds life skills, wellbeing and preparation for adulthood (PfA) throughout students’ education. This includes developing communication, positive relationships, independence, community participation and an understanding of future possibilities. Careers education becomes increasingly focused from Key Stage 3, with opportunities for work-related learning and work experience for older students.
All students in Key Stages 4 and 5 work towards external qualifications or accredited awards appropriate to their abilities, interests and aspirations. These may include AQA Unit Awards, ASDAN awards, Entry Level Certificates, GCSEs, BTEC qualifications at Levels 1, 2 or 3, and AS and A levels.
Our school day
All students begin the day with form time, providing a predictable and supportive start. This allows students to settle, spend time with their key worker and prepare for learning, particularly following a long journey to school.
Morning routines include appropriate tasks and opportunities for sensory circuits, physical activity or other approaches to self-regulation, according to individual needs. These routines help students feel secure and ready to engage in learning.
In our Lower School department, from the Early Years Foundation Stage to Year 7, students spend most of their time with their class teacher and support staff. They also receive specialist teaching in subjects such as PE, music, German and Adventure Learning.
Students enter our Secondary department from Lower School or join us as new students. They follow a full timetable of core and foundation subjects, moving between classrooms and subject teachers with support appropriate to their needs.
The National Curriculum, together with religious education, is adapted to students’ starting points, pace of learning and support needs. Independence, communication and social understanding are developed alongside academic learning throughout the school day.
Our curriculum aims
Our curriculum aims to develop young people who:
Achieve highly and fulfil their potential.
Develop resilience, confidence and a sense of responsibility.
Feel safe, supported, valued and included.
Develop independence and the ability to express their needs and choices.
Secure positive destinations beyond school.
Church Lawton School provides an innovative range of learning experiences designed around the needs of autistic learners. Through high-quality teaching, purposeful assessment and carefully planned support, our curriculum enables students to make progress and respond confidently to a changing world.
Foundational Knowledge and Skills
We recognise that access to a broad, ambitious curriculum depends upon pupils first securing the foundational knowledge, skills and dispositions that enable them to learn successfully. For some pupils, barriers in these areas can significantly affect their ability to access, engage with and benefit from the wider curriculum. The development of foundational skills is therefore a core priority within our curriculum.
Foundational skills are the essential building blocks that underpin learning, independence and participation in school and society. They are not viewed as separate from the curriculum but as enabling competencies that allow pupils to access increasingly complex knowledge and experiences over time.
Our curriculum places particular emphasis on the following areas.
Executive Function
The cognitive processes that enable pupils to plan, organise, manage attention, remember instructions, regulate behaviour and monitor their own learning. Developing executive function supports success across all areas of the curriculum, with explicit teaching, visual support and predictable routines used according to individual needs.
Physical Development
Gross and fine motor skills that enable pupils to participate fully in learning. This includes posture, balance, coordination, handwriting readiness, physical independence and the stamina required for learning.
Communication and Language
The ability to understand, process and express language effectively. Communication underpins learning, relationships, self-advocacy and participation across all curriculum areas. We recognise and support different forms of communication, including augmentative and alternative communication where appropriate.
Early Reading
The acquisition of phonological awareness, decoding, fluency and comprehension. Reading is fundamental to accessing the wider curriculum and is prioritised as a gateway to future learning and life opportunities.
Early Mathematics
The development of number sense, subitising, counting, mathematical language and early calculation skills that form the foundation for later mathematical understanding.
Early Writing and Transcription
The physical and cognitive skills required for written communication, including handwriting, spelling, sentence construction and the transcription skills needed to record and communicate ideas effectively. Appropriate adaptations and technology support pupils who experience barriers to recording their ideas.
General Knowledge and Cultural Capital
The background knowledge, vocabulary, experiences and understanding of the world that enable pupils to make sense of new learning. We are committed to broadening pupils’ cultural experiences and ensuring access to the knowledge needed to participate confidently in society.
Attention and Engagement
The ability to sustain attention, engage purposefully in learning and participate successfully in increasingly demanding tasks. We support attention and engagement through accessible teaching, meaningful activities and adjustments to the learning environment, recognising the influence of communication, sensory needs and emotional wellbeing.
Self-Regulation and Self-Control
The development of skills to recognise and manage emotions, behaviour and attention in different situations. Through supportive relationships, co-regulation and individual strategies, pupils learn to understand their needs, communicate when they require help and access approaches that support their wellbeing and readiness to learn.
Resilience and Learning Behaviours
The capacity to persevere when faced with challenge, learn from mistakes, adapt to change and develop confidence as learners. Carefully supported opportunities to experience challenge and success help pupils become increasingly independent over time.
Play and Exploration
Through play, investigation and exploration, pupils develop curiosity, creativity, problem-solving skills and an understanding of the world. This is particularly important within the Early Years Foundation Stage and for pupils with complex learning needs.
Independence and Personal Development
The skills needed to make choices, solve problems, manage routines and become active participants in education and wider life. Developing independence is central to our Quality of Life Framework and preparation for adulthood, while recognising that individuals may continue to need support.
Our Approach
Assessment and curriculum planning identify and address gaps in foundational development alongside subject-specific knowledge. By securing these building blocks, we aim to ensure that every pupil can access a rich, ambitious curriculum, achieve positive outcomes and be equipped for successful participation in modern Britain and adult life.
A particular priority is identifying and addressing foundational gaps before they become cumulative barriers to learning. When pupils have not securely acquired skills such as language, reading, number sense, self-regulation or executive functioning, unmet learning needs can compound over time. This can lead to cumulative dysfluency: increasing difficulty in accessing new learning because the prerequisite understanding, skills or fluency are not yet secure.
For example, difficulties in understanding spoken language can affect reading comprehension; weaknesses in number sense can hinder later mathematical reasoning; and challenges with self-regulation can restrict engagement with increasingly demanding learning tasks. Without appropriate support, these gaps can widen over time, affecting confidence, independence and curriculum access.
Our curriculum therefore prioritises the early identification of barriers to learning and targeted support to develop foundational competencies. This applies at every age and stage: older pupils continue to receive support with foundational skills wherever assessment identifies a need.
Through high-quality teaching, timely intervention and carefully sequenced curriculum planning, we seek to prevent cumulative dysfluency and ensure that all pupils develop the knowledge, skills and dispositions required to thrive academically and socially. Support is informed by ongoing assessment, pupils’ EHCPs, specialist advice and collaboration with pupils and their families.
Foundational learning is developed alongside meaningful access to the wider curriculum. By strengthening these foundations, we enable pupils to engage with current learning, build independence and develop the confidence and curiosity that sustain a lifelong love of learning.
Post-16 Learning
Our 6th Form is where our young people prepare actively for adult life amongst students of their own age, focusing on problem-solving and decision-making, and on independent living skills.
A really important feature of life in the 6th form is the opportunity is to gain valuable experience of life outside school, mixing with other young people, gaining confidence, and seeing that everything they have learned is good preparation for adult life. Our strong links to local colleges mean our young people can choose from an enormous range of subjects, follow their interests and skills, and try new subjects and activities. They can also learn while working with local employers.
Phonics & Reading Schemes
At EYFS and Key Stage 1 we use Read, Write Inc, to teach phonics. Phonics teaches pupils to read accurately and fluently with good comprehension. They learn to form each letter and spell correctly; pupils’ phonetical ability is regularly assessed, and pupils are taught appropriately to their stage of understanding and application.
Unless a child can read, they cannot learn to the full. All teachers promote a love of reading; the choice of books helps pupils to develop a broad range of vocabulary. All teachers have a responsibility to ensure that literacy is developed and supported across the curriculum and understand the importance of disciplinary literacy so that all students are able to read, write and communicate effectively in their subjects.
Training is provided to ensure that specific approaches to literacy are prioritised. Teachers in every subject provide explicit vocabulary instruction to help students access and use academic language. A range of reading strategies are employed to improve students’ comprehension. By actively engaging with what they are reading, students can comprehend complex texts.
Targeted support is provided for students who struggle with writing fluently; teachers us e a variety of approaches to motivate students to write. Reading and writing activities are combined to improve students’ skills in both. Reading helps students to gain knowledge and writing can deepen this understanding.
Opportunities are provided for high quality talk. Teachers support students by modelling high quality talk. All students take part in organised debating to deepen communication skills and awareness and understanding of different perspectives on important issues. A coordinated, specialist programme of support and intervention is in place for students with the weakest levels of literacy.
Music
At Church Lawton School, we recognise the transformative power of music in the lives of our students, especially those with autism. Music is a universal language that can bridge communication gaps, stimulate cognitive functions, and provide emotional expression. Our commitment to integrating music into our educational approach is rooted in its profound impact on enhancing social skills, boosting self-esteem, and fostering a sense of community amongst students.
Our music program is designed to be inclusive and adaptive, catering to the unique needs and abilities of each student. Our students engage in various musical activities, including playing instruments, singing, and movement to music, which not only develops their musical skills but also promotes sensory integration and fine motor skills.
To further enhance the role of music in our school, we have produced our Music Development Plan. This plan outlines our strategic vision for expanding and enriching our music program. Key initiatives include professional development for staff, and the creation of collaborative music projects with local musicians and community organisations. Our goal is to ensure that students at Church Lawton School can experience the joy and benefits of music, ultimately leading to improved educational outcomes and personal growth.
Learning Beyond Church Lawton School
Our education is designed to help your child gain knowledge and skills that will take them on to further study and adult life. We therefore give all our pupils plenty of opportunities to extend their learning beyond our classrooms.
We make regular visits to places of interest such as local farms, parks and National Trust properties, linking our trips to the topics we are studying in class. We encourage your child to interact with as many people as possible, building their confidence and skills, for example by choosing and buying their own snacks in a local shop.
See the Department for Education's performance tables for schools