The Orion Academy with post 16 is a new build school for 108 students aged 10 - 18 with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH), autism and associated cognition and learning needs (C & L).
The single storey courtyard building, with associated landscape works and car park/ student drop off is a welcoming comfortable place for the pupils where they can feel safe within an inclusive environment. A school which they can have a sense of pride in which is fun to come to and a joy for the staff and pupils to use. Vocational learning and Life Skills are at the core of the school curriculum preparing the children for the outside world and giving them independent skills, with a learning environment which has the needs of the individual pupil at its heart. The School will continue to watch over the pupils who are leaving. There is an emphasis on ‘Life Skills’ and vocational teaching preparing individuals for a future in the working world but ensuring those close links with pupils remain beyond the age of 18 and into adulthood. Ultimately, the new school is a place where people want to invest time and effort in, adopting it as part of the neighbourhood and taking pride in the symbolism its buildings represent. A celebration of the school and its pupils cherished by the local community.
