The Aurora Group is a provider of education, care and support for children, young people and adults with special education needs and disabilities. In September 2017, they opened Redehall School in Smallfield, a day school for children with communication challenges. The popularity of Redehall made it apparent there was a high demand for this type of establishment in Tandridge.
This led to a search for new premises, ending up with the renovation and refit of a former church in Francis Road, Caterham. The Aurora Caterham Education Centre opened in March 2020, providing places for children, aged 11-19, with communication difficulties typically associated with Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism.
When the UK entered lockdown a week later a decision was reluctantly made to close the Caterham site. Students who needed to remain at school were able to move to Redehall, continuing their education alongside the children staying on site there. The teaching staff stay in regular communication with those being home-schooled, and use online resources to set them work.
The school is looking forward to re-opening when it is safe to do so, and being able to strengthen its links with the community, including finding suitable businesses to support work experience placements.
Aurora Performance Director Mark Costello said: “Before we opened in Caterham we held several meetings at the school to show people what we were doing. We talked about work experience, and invited local residents to share their skills and experience with our students. Community links are extremely important to the school.
