Snowflake School Improving the quality of family life
Pupils' achievement is outstanding
The Leadership and management of the school are outstanding
..staff provide an exceptionally high level of care.
..pupils make exceptional progress
Ofsted Report - 2023
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Snowflake School
Secondary Site
Welcome to Snowflake School website
At Snowflake School our principal Aim is: “To improve the lives of the children and families by working with our community of staff, pupils and families and following our underpinning SUPER values of;
Safe, Understanding, Patient, Enthusiastic, Respectful
We are committed to supporting pupils, families and the wider community using our experience. expertise and high-quality service that we have provided for many years.
Snowflake School was co-founded by our Chair of Trustees Mrs. Faryaneh Akhavan. Her team of dedicated Trustees give us tremendous support and ensure that Snowflake is a school with constantly outstanding features; (Ofsted Inspection, 2013, 2016,2019, 2023)
This is my second headship of a special school for young people with autism, using the science of Applied Behaviour Analysis. As well as a Master’s in Education, I bring over twenty-six years of leadership and over thirty years of teaching experience and expertise in Special Educational Needs.
We understand the challenges that you face as you seek to help your son or daughter with autism to develop their skills, and also how difficult it is for you to find that special school where you feel confident that your son or daughter will be treated as a unique human being, an individual who is able to achieve and be recognised for how unique and special they are.
Just as no two snowflakes are ever the same, we view our pupils as individuals with their own personalities, likes and dislikes, strengths and challenges. Our school provides a positive and secure teaching and learning environment, where we nurture our pupils to flourish and grow.
Our teaching and learning are guided by the science of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) including Skinners Analysis of Verbal Behaviour. Our pupils receive an individually devised programme based on a pupil centred, multi professional approach to learning, aimed at increasing communication and independence, planned in conjunction with subject specialist teachers and delivered 1;1 and in groups by a trained teachers and tutors. Once they start attending Snowflake School their development is constantly monitored through daily data keeping, programmes, meetings and specialised assessment tools. This information will continually inform their teaching plan and also provide clear scientific evidence of learning and progress.
Our pupils are part of a class group consisting of 6 pupils and 6 ABA tutors led by a teacher and ABA supervisor. They access 1:1 provision as well as group teaching, therapies, social play and generalisation throughout the day.
We recognise that families know the pupils best and so we understand the importance of positive and regular home /school communication. We involve you throughout the education process, whether in daily feedback, meetings, consultations or reviews.
In November 2020, Snowflake School expanded to two buildings; a Primary site, based in Earls Court and a Secondary site, based in Acton. Our total number of pupils in the school is 42.
The success of Snowflake School is dependent on our team of gifted professionals who work with skill, commitment and determination. We aspire to be a Learning Community that invests in the continuous development of staff because our effectiveness is fuelled by the quality of our team.
Thank you for visiting Snowflake School, you are welcome to arrange a personal visit or call us for chat about your son or daughter. You can also follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.
Kerry Sternstein - Head teacher
Snowflake School - Improving the quality of family life
Snowflake is proud to be supported by the Bernard Sunley Foundation
Sustainable Travel
NASS Membership
Our guiding principles and aims
The first five principles are those which underpin the philosophy behind the successful 'Carbone Clinic' in New York. Snowflake School staff have all trained with Dr Vincent Carbone and his associates in order to apply these principles..
Learner's Potential
We believe every learner has the potential to develop skills beyond their current level and should be free of behaviours and activities that cause injury, pain or limit opportunities for full community involvement.
Functional Communication
We will teach functional communication skills and other skills that will lead to rewarding personal relationships, well-being, vocational productivity and self-determined daily activities.
Applied Behaviour
We rely on the literature of the science of applied behaviour analysis and its underlying assumptions to guide our analysis of learner needs and our recommendations of effective treatment and instruction.
Development of Skills
Functional communication is the foundation that supports the development of skills in all areas and therefore B.F. Skinner's analysis of verbal behaviour and the supporting empirical work guide our treatment and instructional recommendations.
Instructional Methods
The choice of instructional methods will be guided by reliable data which are gathered and analysed on a schedule sufficient to make informed decisions.
First Educators
We recognise that parents/carers are the child's first educators and that their expertise in their child is of paramount importance to us.
All-round Development
The link between home, school and external agencies are crucial to fully support the all-round development of the child.
Testimonial
We are indebted towards SNOWFLAKE for life - which is our daughter's second home.
My daughter has been at Snowflake School for little more than a week and made more progress in that time than she did in her previous school where she was for 6 years. Snowflake provided training prior to my daughter's attendance which has helped staff to understand my daughter's needs, which in turn, has influenced her initial success at the school. It will hopefully help her in the future to reach her full potential, which will not only help her, but all her family to have a better quality of life.
If am happy with my child's progress so far and hope that if further training is required for staff, then it will be available just as quickly as it was in my daughter's case.
the school has an open door policy and all our concerns over issues big and small are dealt with immediately and solutions / suggestions given to make family lives of our children & us better
His improved use of communication has allowed us to know and understand our child better. A knowledge and understanding that would have never been imaginable without all the fantastic staff at Snowflake'
My wife and I would like to thank you for allowing our children, Ian and Matthew, to experience your school. It has been a wonderful one for them. They're benefiting both, academically and behaviourally since enrolment. We thank you and the staff members for the patience, kindness and personal attention you have been giving them.
Lucian has a smile on his face every single morning on the way to school, he loves Snowflake!! We cannot express our gratitude enough to all the staff for their dedication and care in helping our child reach his potential in a happy/positive environment.
The first day my son came back from Snowflake school, I noticed that he was wearing crisp white socks that weren't his - there was a note in his diary which said that my son “wanted to jump in wet puddles as his reinforcement for learning so we took advantage of this and taught him the skill. Afterwards, we dried his feet and changed his socks as they were soggy”.
I remember feeling overwhelmed with emotion. I had not experienced this level of concern before in any of his previous educational settings. This is just a small example of how closely Snowflake school looks after the education and wellbeing of their students. The ethos of Snowflake school in a nutshell is that they not only use the best science, but also envelope the child with compassion and care. Because of the work Snowflake has done, we are living a life that we thought was taken away from us with the diagnosis of autism - a life full of optimism and opportunity. Thank you, Snowflake.
I would like to say a big THANK all the wonderful staff at Snowflake for your Herculean efforts to keep the children safe and to continue to pave the way for the continuation of their ABA education in these extremely difficult and unprecedented times! I can only imagine the pressures you must be under and how daunting it must be to coordinate everything. If there is anything at all, we can help with, please do not hesitate to call.
I have to thank you for all the time that you have spent preparing for this hearing. I feel very indebted to you Kerry and snowflake, for being on top of everything as always!
2022 © Snowflake School for Children with Autism - UK Charity Registration No 1110687.