Specialist support, seamless transition, life-changing growth
Kingsley is a dyslexia-friendly school and Devon and Cornwall's only CReSTeD accredited school. The Connect Centre brings our specialist expertise together in one place, where children with a range of learning differences grow in confidence and thrive.
Students aged 7 to 16, often with an EHCP
The Centre supports a range of profiles, including:
specific learning difficulties (SpLD) such as dyslexia, dyspraxia and dyscalculia
autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
ADD and ADHD
global developmental delay (GDD)
pragmatic and semantic language difficulties
other individual learning profiles
Help matched to the individual rather than assumed
When a child is referred, the process is the same each time.
- 1
A referral. A child is referred to the SEND team, whether by their teacher, their family or an outside professional.
- 2
An assessment. The team assesses them to identify their strengths, any gaps in knowledge and any specific learning differences.
- 3
A recommendation. From there we recommend the right support or intervention, and agree it with the family.
What the approach rests on
The Centre is a calm, low-distraction and student-led environment with small classes, where our work rests on three things.
Targeted and shaped by each student's EHCP and evolving needs.
Communication developed through structured, supported interaction.
Wellbeing supported in a consistent, secure setting.
Life skills, community and outdoor learning
The timetable builds in life skills, local community engagement and outdoor learning, with a strong emphasis on wellbeing, environmentalism and sustainability.
Where it is right for them, students join mainstream lessons in the Prep or Senior School, supported to integrate socially and academically at a pace that suits them. The aim is that every child feels safe, understood, included and able to make progress from their own starting point.
An independent standard for dyslexia provision
CReSTeD, the Council for the Registration of Schools Teaching Dyslexic Pupils, keeps a register of schools with recognised provision for pupils with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties. Schools join the register after their provision has been independently assessed.
Kingsley is Devon and Cornwall's only CReSTeD accredited school, and our 2023 CReSTeD Report is available to read.
My child would not be where they are now, a confident student at a highly respected mainstream college, without the amazing and brilliant team at the Connect Centre. They see the potential in every child and nurture it out of them.
Children belong to the Kingsley Family first
The Connect Centre is part of Kingsley's whole-school Bespoke Curriculum. Its students are Kingsley students and members of the Kingsley Family, taking a full part in House life, sport, the arts and outdoor education, with specialist help on hand whenever they need it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Connect Centre and who is it for?
The Connect Centre is Kingsley's purpose-built specialist centre for students aged 7 to 16 with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties, autism, ADD and ADHD, global developmental delay and other learning profiles, many of them supported by an EHCP. It brings together the expertise of the former Edgehill and Grenville Centres.
What is CReSTeD accreditation?
CReSTeD is the Council for the Registration of Schools Teaching Dyslexic Pupils. It keeps a register of schools whose provision for pupils with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties has been independently assessed. Kingsley is Devon and Cornwall's only CReSTeD accredited school.
How do schools test for dyslexia?
At Kingsley a child can be referred to the SEND team by a teacher, their family or an outside professional. The team assesses every student referred to identify their strengths, any gaps in knowledge and any specific learning differences such as dyslexia, then recommends the right support or intervention and agrees it with the family.
Northdown Road, Bideford