There was a thumbs up from inspectors when Ofsted visited Ascent Autism Specialist College in Newton-le-Willows recently.
The visit, on 12 March 2025, confirmed that the provider continues to be ‘Good’, with inspectors particularly pleased with the work the college is doing to inspire and support students for their future careers.
Ascent Autism Specialist College is a college for young people aged 16 to 25 who face significant barriers to education and training, including autism and special
education needs and/or disabilities. The provider is based at an education centre in Newton-le-Willows and a vocational learning hub in Haydock. The college is part of Remarkable Autism Ltd.
The report described a setting where students enjoy learning, taking part in a “wide range of high quality activities to explore their talents and interests.” It said: “Students engage enthusiastically in enterprise projects and experiences in the workplace that enable them to explore their career aspirations.”
It added: “Students become more confident and resilient through the college’s well-planned personal development programme”, which includes participating in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, leisure activities such as swimming, accessing local gyms and residential trips.
Describing the work that Ascent Autism Specialist College is doing to help learners develop skills that make them ready for the adult world, and increase their employability, Ofsted said: “Leaders are ambitious for the college and its students. They have diversified their curriculum and built significant links with local and regional employers.
“Leaders have developed supported internships to enable students to gain paid employment. At the time of the inspection, students were coming to the end of this programme.
“Although students have not yet completed their internship, they have gained essential employability and practical skills in catering, horticulture and customer
services via the college’s employment hub.
You can read the Ofsted report in full here.
Julliet Doherty, head of adult services at Ascent Autism Specialist College, said: “I am so proud of both the staff and students at Ascent College following our recent Ofsted inspection, where we continued to show that the college is a good provider of further education that meets the needs of our neurodiverse young people.
“We truly believe that we are leading the way in what further education should look like and place a huge emphasis on equipping our autistic students with the knowledge and skills needed to thrive both independently and in the workplace. It was pleasing to see that the Ofsted inspectors also picked up on this, noting the changes we have made to diversify our curriculum, the relationships we have built with regional businesses and the employability skills students have gained via our vocational learning hub.
“The move to our new site on The Parks, opposite Haydock Park Racecourse in September, will continue to further support this work and we are extremely excited to see what we can achieve here.”
Ascent Autism Specialist College is part of the Remarkable Autism Charity. CEO of the charity, Robin Bush, added: “Remarkable Autism Group has an ambition to provide world leading services for its learners and students. Ascent College is an innovative provider of adult education and training that is constantly working to provide real world opportunities to support students to achieve the outcomes they wish for their lives. Our award-winning employment, resilience and academic curriculums are recognised as some of the best in the country.
“We were delighted to welcome Ofsted into our college and show them the progress that our students have made. I am hugely proud of the team to achieve this external recognition and I’m excited to support Ascent College as they move onto the next stage of their journey.”
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