Welcome from the Head of Service
I am pleased to introduce you to Overton School, Ludlow, Shropshire. We are a small, nurturing and supportive community caring for young people with a range of special educational needs including autism, learning disabilities, speech and language needs and co-occurring conditions.
The school is set in beautiful surroundings offering a purposeful learning environment to support young people re-engage with their education and build plans for successful futures.
Life at Overton School is shaped by our commitment to enable our young people to realise their personal potential, communicate effectively, contribute to wider society, prepare for life beyond school and successfully transition into adulthood. Our young people will experience a bespoke and tailored education to meet the needs of all, supporting whole person development and personal success.
I hope that our website captures the spirit of Overton, giving you a snapshot of what we offer here. We encourage families and professionals to visit the school and look forward to giving you a warm welcome to our community so that you can see for yourself the difference that we make in the lives of the young people that we care for.
Nicola Chokkuea
Samantha Clarke – Interim Deputy Teacher- Quality of Education & Examinations Officer
Samantha has ten years’ experience educating children and young people who have a range needs including SEMH, Learning Difficulties and Autism. She joined Overton School in September 2021 as LD Specialist Teacher and Examinations Officer before becoming Assistant Headteacher and Examinations Officer in April 2022. Samantha is motivated and passionate about ensuring all pupils attending Overton School reach their full potential by developing personalised curriculum pathway strands and ensuring high quality teaching and learning is delivered throughout the school creating a positive environment where all pupils thrive and experience a love of learning.
Bethan Cash – SENCo & Interim Deputy Headteacher
Bethan joined Overton School in September after nearly ten years experience working in mainstream secondary and further education settings. She has vast experience working as Head of Special Needs and Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead, working with students with Autism, learning disabilities and physical disabilities. Throughout her career, she has always been passionate about making a difference to the lives of young people and enabling them to reach their full potential.
Chris Groom – Chair of Governors and Regional Director
Chris is the Chair of Governors and Regional Director for the Midlands and Wales. This area includes Options Trent Acres, Overton, Maple Grove, Longdon Park, Higford and Kinsale Schools.
Chris has worked in education in both Secondary and SEND settings for over twenty years, ten of which have been at a senior level. Prior to taking on this role, Chris was employed by the Outcomes First Group in the capacity of Headteacher at Longdon Park School and Head of Service at Underley Garden School. During this time, Chris has taken great pleasure in empowering staff in the development of both school and residential settings to ensure they are highly successful. Chris believes everyone has the potential to be a leader and part of his role is developing and nurturing this capacity at all levels. He believes that the decisions we make should always have a positive impact on the children and young adults in our care.