Cawood Academy
Children in Gillitts

Cawood Academy is a special needs school catering for a wide range of children, ranging from gifted to autistic. Each pupil is well-known to each staff member and each child feels comfortable with the teachers. Art, crafts and music are approached in such a way that the learners don't realise that they are learning.
All of the children are accepted as “out of the box” thinkers who enjoy a hands-on approach to learning. All children need special attention and we pride ourselves on developing each individual's unique talents whilst remediating their developmental delays.
Staff are experienced and knowledgeable about their particular areas of expertise. Our Foundation Phase learners develop at individual paces and are given frequent short breaks to get rid of excess energy and rejuvenate their minds.
Small classes enable the staff the unique opportunity of identifying problems and rectifying them quickly. The children are nurtured and are free to be children at Cawood.

Cawood Academy is a special needs school catering for a wide scope of children, ranging from gifted to autistic. All children need special attention and we pride ourselves on developing each individual's unique talents whilst remediating their developmental delays. Small classes enable the staff the unique opportunity of identifying problems and rectifying them quickly. Our Foundation Phase learners develop at individual paces and are given frequent short breaks to get rid of excess energy and rejuvenate their minds. Art, crafts and music are approached in such a way that the learners don't realise that they are learning. Good old-fashioned games are played as well as ball games. Our two houses are used for incentives as well as debates etc. Staff are experienced and knowledgeable about their particular areas of expertise. Each pupil is well-known to each staff member and each child feels comfortable with the teachers. The children are nurtured and are free to be children at Cawood. to the principal, a sounding board for the staff, a go-between between Cawood and the parents and, more importantly, acts as mother to those who feel ill or scrape a knee. The children are taught to handle our pets with respect and love. In return, it is not unusual to see a dog on a child's lap (who is at an emotional low) or a cat sitting in a window sill in a teacher's classroom basking in the sun. Our dogs are protective of our pupils, greeting each one of them every day. There are no bells separating lessons, leaving the teaching day open to flexibility. If a teacher needs time to finish off an important lesson, a message is sent to the next teacher and therefore the children can progress happily with the lesson they are busy with. An example of this was our recent Senior Elections which lasted for a fair deal of the day. Lessons 'lost' are made up with flexible time-tables. Many of our children want to go deeper into topics offered by CAPS. We can do this at Cawood as we do not have assemblies, sports day practices or major play practices. Our children often go on outings which will equip them with skills for later on in their lives. Parents are encouraged to develop a good relationship with staff, working together to make each child the best he/she can be. It is a nurturing environment to cultivate extraordinary minds. The building is warm and inviting and we try to keep our classrooms cosy and interesting. It is a mixed gender, mixed age and mixed cultural environment where we learn to get along with each other and respect each other’s views on family values and religion.