Welcome to Watling View School

Watling View is a 2-19 maintained special school in St Albans, in the county of Hertfordshire. The school caters for up to 92 pupils, with a wide range of complex and profound learning difficulties. These include severe autism, complex medical conditions, physical and mobility difficulties, as well as severe developmental delay.

Watling View is a special place to be.  We pride ourselves on the relationships between staff and pupils, which promote mutual respect and helps all pupils to develop a love of learning.

At the core of what we do is to develop individual's communication and independence.  We achieve this by following highly personalised approaches to the curriculum and using a total communication approach to promoting and developing communication.

We are passionate about our vision, which guides us in all that we do for our pupils.

“Watling View - Be kind, Be responsible, Be the Best You Can”.

Our mission statement and values informs our way of working:

• We are led by Watling View’s vision
• We develop learners to be the “best” they can
• We respect and value differences
• We foster a safe, happy, inclusive and calm environment
• We know, understand and meet the needs of each child
• We build on strengths and overcome barriers
• We maximise potential, independence, communication skills and celebrate achievements
• We prepare learners for each stage of learning, including preparation for adulthood
• We provide a highly individualised curriculum for each of our pupils
• We are effective communicators
• We work with parents, carers, other professionals and the wider community
• We strive to be a centre of excellence to promote best practice and secure excellent outcomes for all pupils

Teachers and support staff are well qualified in the forefront of curriculum delivery for children with Special Educational Needs. Staff work closely with specialist medical staff, including Speech and language Therapists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and paediatric nurses and doctors. The school also employs a Music Therapist whose expertise provides significant support to children and their parents in the exploration of communication and development in a safe, protective environment. We have specialist teachers in the area of PE, Swimming and Horticulture.

However, the best way to learn about our school and the way we work at Watling View is to visit us and see the school in action. We actively encourage families and friends to be involved in all aspects of school life and aim to work in partnership with parents and carers enabling our pupils to realise their potential.

Visitors are very welcome and we look forward to meeting you.

Andy Scott 

Headteacher