Trustee/Director (Voluntary)

Farney Close is an independent day and 5 day residential special school registered with the DFE for up to 72 boys and girls aged 9 to 18 years.The school is situated in mid- Sussex, between Brighton and Gatwick Airport. Set in 32 acres of mixed woodland, 3 lakes, a range of 10 residential houses and an extensive range of specialist classrooms, including a large sports hall, and a large vocational building used for Mechanics, Construction Studies, and Catering Services.

Farney Close is a company limited by guarantee and registered a charity. It is overseen by a board of Governors who govern the school and a board of Directors who oversee the running of the Company. The schools Senior Leadership Team (SLT) currently includes a Principal, Vice Principal, Head of Education and Head of Care. There are 14 teachers, 2 Instructors, 23 Residential Care Workers, a School Social Worker, Referrals and Inclusion Officer, School Nurse, SEN department and Estate Manager. There is also a range of ancillary workers for administration, catering, laundry, cleaning and maintenance. 

The schools last Ofsted Education inspection in October 2022 saw us move from requires improvement to Good. Our most recent Ofsted Social Care Inspection also judged us to be Good with Leadership and  Management viewed as Outstanding.   

Farney Close is used by Local Authorities across the south, southeast and east of England including Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex, Kent and Essex as well as by several London boroughs.

Farney Close provides education, care, social development and therapeutic support to young people who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and experience a range of needs including:

· Social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH)

· Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

· Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) (a sub-type of ADHD)

· Asperger’s Syndrome (High level functioning)

· Autism (ASC) (where challenging behaviours are the primary need)

· Conduct Disorder (CD)

· Dyslexia

· Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD)

· Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

· Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

· Speech and Language Difficulties including social communication and interaction.

The school aims to develop young peoples’ educational and independence skills at all times and to make them aware of their personal and social responsibilities. Learning, whether it is social or educational, takes place in small groups and is laid out in step by step in order to be effective and clear. All packages put in place to support the young people, be they educational or social, are personalized, and shaped to reflect the identified needs of the individual.

The school is exceptionally well developed in terms of resources and accommodation and this reflects our determination to provide the very best resources for pupils and staff. It also supports our premise that outstanding physical and social environments provide a positive and stable model through which pupils’ have the best advantages to learn. The unusually high level of therapeutic provision also reflects our commitment to meeting individual’s needs at all levels. In addition to the quality of support offered our staff, this includes a range of therapist available for Art, and Speech and Language Therapy, an adolescent counselor and a Dyslexia specialist. Whilst we would not claim to be a therapeutic environment we would say that the whole experience that a young person receives at Farney Close is therapeutic.

The school has a post 16 provision that focuses mainly on three areas: College placement, Work Experience, and Independence Development. Our aim with this group of students is not necessarily to improve a pupil’s examination result, but to secure the next steps for the more vulnerable pupils who find an immediate move away from school at the end of year11 very difficult to sustain.

More information about the school can be found on our website on www.farneyclose.co.uk