Blended Curriculum
Ascent Autism Specialist College’s Blended Learning pathway offers a flexible and personalised approach to education, combining online and face-to-face learning to support and enhance meaningful interaction between students and teachers, while also promoting independence, collaboration and self-advocacy.
What are the most important benefits of Blended Learning
Ascent autism specialist college offers specialist education for students aged 16 to 25 with autism, co-occurring diagnoses and additional complex needs. Our students require a bespoke package of support to engage with their learning on multiple levels.
At Ascent, we provide highly specialised teaching and learning support to ensure each student’s needs are understood and we exceed their EHCP outcomes. One of our curricula offers a Blended Learning pathway.
Specialist Staff
The strength of our specialist staff’s relationship with our students is essential to Ascent’s success. Our offer of a Blended Learning curriculum ensures we engage and enable students by identifying what motivates them, what they’re interested in, their strengths, and aspirations and then applying this to determine bespoke educational pathways. Our students have high levels of individual support, meaning that learning opportunities are experiential, purposeful and specific.
Blended Learning
Blended Learning is an educational strategy that combines conventional onsite education with online/virtual learning. The Ascent approach to education and learning is flexible. It can offer those students for whom onsite learning requires an extended transition time a blend of an enriched virtual model alongside a face-to-face model onsite in college or at home.
The Ascent Blended Learning model has many advantages; through the systematic integration of online and face-to-face engagement, we support and enhance meaningful interaction between students, teachers and differentiated resources. Students can work ‘independently’ and at their own pace online but still have access to the personal attention of a specialist teacher and specialist teaching support assistant, accessing the knowledge and resources Ascent provide inclusively to all their students. At the same time, specialist teachers and teaching support assistants can structure bespoke courses and deliver instruction more flexibly or creatively than in a traditional classroom setting.
Blended Learning – the benefits:
- Facilitate information delivery
- Increases motivation, confidence, self – esteem
- Enhances students’ independence
- Creation of personalised educational activities
- Collaboration between specialist staff and students, promoting social inclusion
- Providing online personnel development opportunities for the digital world of work
- Create conditions for self-advocacy and inclusion
- Counter negative perceptions of SEN, supporting students accessing the education curriculum and enabling those with SEN to achieve their full potential
Parents and Professionals
Local specialist college hosts event for new neighbours
Ascent Autism Specialist College in Newton-Le-Willows welcomed a range of local businesses to its ‘Meet the Neighbours’ event ahead of its new site opening on The Parks in September. Part of the Remarkable Autism Charity group, Ascent College is moving to its new home...
Autism Advice Forum – Safeguarding Hate Crime
Wednesday 2nd July on teams 10 am - 11.30 am Micheal Belcher from Merseyside police will talk to parents and careers about "Safeguarding Hate Crime". The forum is aimed to support parents and carer with sole purpose to enlighten and offer the tools and knowledge to...
Ascent College Earns National Careers Education Accreditation
Ascent Autism Specialist College is celebrating a major milestone after being officially accredited with the Quality in Careers Standard - the UK’s only national award recognising excellence in careers education, information, advice, and guidance. This prestigious...
Inspirational Ascent Autism Specialist College students attend Buckingham Palace
Two students from Ascent Autism Specialist College in Newton-le-Willows attended Buckingham Palace to receive their Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards, making them the first students in the college’s history to achieve the prestigious accolades. Earlier this month, Ben...
Ascent Autism Advice Forum – EHCPs, annual reviews, phase transfer, Tribunals and appeals
Our next Ascent Autism Advice forum is taking place on Wednesday 5th June at 10.30am. The topic of our first session will cover EHCPs, annual reviews, phase transfer, Tribunals and appeals and will be delivered by Samantha Williams, Solicitor in the Education...
Work begins on local specialist college’s new 10,000 square foot site
Ascent Autism Specialist College has begun the transformation of its recently purchased site on a St Helens multi-use business park into a bespoke facility designed to offer personalised pathways to independence and employment for its cohort of students. The...
Ascent Autism Advice Forum – May Session
Our next Ascent Autism Advice forum is taking place on Wednesday 7th May at 10am. Michelle Seddon from 'Enable Law' will be supporting to discuss 'Wills, Powers of Attorney, Trusts and Estate Administration'. Website: Specialist Personal Injury & Medical...
Ascent Autism Specialist College celebrates huge success at enterprise fair
Students at Ascent Autism Specialist College in Newton-le-Willows recently achieved huge success at its highly anticipated enterprise-themed spring fair. The well-attended event showcased the students’ creative talents and reinforced the college’s commitment to...
Ascent Autism Advice Forum – April Session
Date: Thursday 3rd April 2025Location: Online via Microsoft Teams Join us for the next session of the Ascent Autism Advice Forum, where we bring together parents, carers, professionals, and anyone interested in learning more about autism and best practices in support...
Join us at the Ascent Autism Specialist College Spring Fayre!
We're delighted to invite families, friends, and supporters to our annual Spring Fayre taking place on Friday, 28th March 2025, from 10:00 to 11:30 am. It's set to be a wonderful morning filled with community spirit, colourful activities, and joyful moments welcoming...