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Wembley Manor School is a specialist setting in Brent, North London, operating as part of The Rise Partnership Trust. The school provides a dedicated environment for learners with a diagnosis of Autism and additional special educational needs. Guided by the Trust motto 'Love, Learn, Laugh', the school is committed to championing unique potential and preparing learners effectively for adulthood. To support these goals, Wembley Manor began their skills building journey through the Accelerator programme, with a particular focus on learner communication.
Overall impact
Embedding the Skills Builder Universal Framework has established a cohesive, structured approach to essential skill development across the school. By integrating communication targets directly into student reviews and aligning daily learning with skill steps, learners are making measurable progress in confidence and self-advocacy. Staff report that the common language provided by the Framework enhances multi-disciplinary working, ensuring that speech, language, and academic goals reinforce one another.
Keep it simple
The school ensures a consistent focus on essential skills through utilising the language of the Universal Framework, celebrating achievement and pupil leadership opportunities. Communication targets, drawn directly from skill step language, are in place for all learners, shared with parents, and incorporated into annual reviews. Skill use is recognised and celebrated in weekly achievement assemblies. Essential skills are also promoted through careers classroom sessions, school council and eco-champion initiatives, and regular parent updates.
Start early, keep going
Essential skills implementation is structured progressively across the school, with learners in years 7 to 10 being provided with opportunities to learn about and build essential skills.
Measure it
All learners have a communication target that is linked to the language and steps of the Communication skills of the Universal Framework. Learner progress is logged and tracked on Evidence for Learning, forming part of the annual review, with regular updates provided to parents.
Focus tightly
Explicit skill teaching is delivered either via a dedicated slot or within lesson teaching. Resources such as short lessons from the Skills Builder Hub are used to teach and build essential skills with the year groups covered.
Keep practising
Essential skills are actively reinforced across the wider curriculum, including in English lessons. Teachers incorporate skill logos onto lesson PowerPoints and use framework language for sentence starters, with monitoring shows that curriculum links are being made across most year groups. Learners also practice these skills more organically through extracurricular clubs and pupil leadership roles.
Bring it to life
Opportunities to learn and develop essential skills through real-world experiences are embedded through skills-focused preparation reflection. Student surveys indicate increased interest in futures and careers since the school embarked on the Accelerator programme, further bolstered by enterprise days, regular visiting speakers, work experience, and weekly local visits where learners interview staff and ask questions.
What's next
Building upon a successful first year, Wembley Manor School aims to embed the Universal Framework even more comprehensively across all year groups, subjects and enrichment activities to ensure long-term sustainability and learner success; providing bespoke training to staff to help achieve this.
