Who is EmpowerEd North for?
EmpowerEd North supports children who need extra academic help or confidence with learning, as well as autistic children and young people and learners with learning disabilities or more complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). There are different ways to get involved:
- Home tuition: individual academic support and specialist SEND teaching for learners aged 5+, from £35 per hour. The full quote, including any travel charge, is agreed before booking.
- Sensory stories: calm, shared activities at The Hearth, with school-age sessions at 10am and age 16+ sessions at 1pm on each event date.
- Commissioned specialist AP placements: highly individualised support for primary-age, secondary-age and post-16 autistic learners and learners with severe learning disabilities, complex SEND, communication needs, sensory needs, anxiety, dysregulation, placement breakdown or transition needs. Each commissioned placement is considered individually where need, suitability, risk, staffing, venue, insurance and commissioning arrangements fit the provision.
- Home Education Pilot Programme: a separate developing small-group strand for autistic learners aged around 12-16 with social communication differences who are home educated, not currently attending school, or not attending school full time.
Does my child need complex needs or a diagnosis for home tuition?
No. Home tuition also welcomes children who need extra help with English, maths, understanding schoolwork or confidence. We discuss your child's learning level and the support needed to check that tuition is a good fit.
How do I choose the right support?
For individual teaching at home, start with Home Tuition. For a shared story experience, see Sensory Stories. If you are unsure, a short email is enough and we can help you explore the options.
If a child or young person needs highly individualised planning, risk-managed support, 1:1 or 2:1 staffing, transition work, or support arranged through a school, college or local authority, the commissioned specialist AP route is likely to be the relevant starting point. Primary-age referrals would need careful age/stage, venue, staffing, risk and commissioner planning. If the young person is aged around 12-16, has autism and social communication differences, and may benefit from a carefully matched small group while not attending school full time, the Home Education Pilot may be worth exploring.
Can families make contact directly?
Yes. Families are welcome to make an initial enquiry or share what they feel is needed. A commissioned placement will still need appropriate planning and agreement with the relevant commissioner, school, college or local authority where applicable.
Does a young person need an EHCP?
Many commissioned placements are likely to link to EHCP outcomes, but an initial conversation can still explore need, context and suitability. The important starting point is understanding the young person's communication, regulation, safety, learning and transition needs.
Is EmpowerEd North a school?
No. EmpowerEd North is a specialist alternative provision and is not currently a registered school, independent special school, college or Section 41 provider. It does not offer full-time education at this stage. Commissioned placements sit within a wider plan agreed with the family, school, college, local authority or other commissioner.
Can learners attend EmpowerEd full-time?
EmpowerEd placements are individually agreed. For learners of compulsory school age, placements are normally part-time and arranged in partnership with the commissioning school or local authority. For post-16 learners who are no longer of compulsory school age, attendance may be more flexible, depending on the learner's EHCP outcomes, support needs, commissioner agreement, staffing, venue suitability and insurance. We discuss this carefully before any placement is confirmed.
Can EmpowerEd support 19-25 learners?
Young adults aged 19-25 with EHC plans may be considered where there is a clear education or training purpose linked to EHCP outcomes, Preparing for Adulthood, independence, communication, community participation and meaningful progression. Any placement would be individually agreed with the local authority and relevant professionals.
How long is a placement?
The current starting offer is a 12-week initial placement with a formal 6-week review. Longer-term placements may be agreed where a learner needs more time to build relationships, routine and readiness, subject to review and written agreement.
Do you work with schools and local authorities?
Yes. EmpowerEd North can work with schools, colleges, local authorities and other professionals as part of a wider education package. We share updates, review progress and help adults around the learner understand what is working.
Do you provide clinical assessment or therapy?
No. EmpowerEd North does not provide clinical assessment, diagnostic assessment or therapy. We are happy to work alongside external clinicians and professionals where this supports the learner's needs.
Can you support community access?
Where appropriate and carefully planned, support may include graded community learning, sharing space with others, accessing social or leisure opportunities, building independence and preparing for appointments or transitions.
Can you help with transition to another provider?
Yes, where this is part of the agreed plan. EmpowerEd North can support bespoke transition by building trust with the learner, working with the accepting provider, planning graded steps, preparing visual supports or social stories, sharing strategies and modelling approaches.
How are placements funded?
Funding is discussed case by case. Placements may be discussed with a school, local authority, college or other commissioner. Indicative commissioned pricing is based on a simple shared-group and add-on model: standard shared group placements may start from £150 per learner per day for up to 6 compatible learners, and enhanced shared group placements may start from £170 per learner per day for up to 4 learners where a smaller or quieter group is needed. Where a learner can share the venue but needs dedicated adult support, a 1:1 support add-on may apply. Where a learner cannot safely share the venue, sole-venue 1:1 or 2:1 packages are agreed separately. Transition support, outreach, community-based support, enhanced reporting and separately commissioned one-to-one teaching/tutoring are agreed according to needs, hours, staffing, location, travel, risk and review requirements.
Who leads the teaching and support?
EmpowerEd North is led by Janice March, a specialist SEND and autism teacher and experienced senior SEND leader with over 20 years of experience. She holds a Certificate of Education and a Postgraduate Certificate in Autism with Distinction.
Janice has Designated Safeguarding Lead training, updated safeguarding and Prevent training, and a current Level 3 First Aid at Work qualification. Read about Janice's background and qualifications.
What might a session include?
A session might include communication work, sensory regulation, visual supports, Social Stories, TEACCH-informed structure, life skills, practical learning, community access, independence, PSHE, functional English or maths, or preparation for a transition. The starting point depends on what the learner needs.
What if my young person cannot access the community yet?
That is understood. For some learners, the first step is simply tolerating another person's presence, sharing space, communicating a need or building enough trust to leave the house or enter a familiar place. Community access can be built gradually.
