RSDCD is a mixed day and residential , co-educational, non- maintained special school and college which caters for pupils/students with severe and complex learning difficulties combined with significant communication difficulties including very limited or no oral language. Most students present with severe/profound hearing loss with additional complex needs but we also admit students who are hearing where they have complex social communication disorders and severe learning difficulties. The range of needs accommodated include profound and multiple learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties, visual impairment, multi-sensory impairment, physical disabilities, autism and includes students with challenging behaviours associated with their disability.
Students are generally in the age range 7-19 but we sometimes admit younger students on individual programmes where this is considered appropriate and we have a growing number of students aged 19-21 accessing a Vocational Pathways course. Pupils/students attending RSDCD come from across the whole of the British Isles because of the very specialist provision made here.
In order to meet the diverse needs of our pupils/students we have adopted a total communication approach incorporating sign, speech, symbols (including PECS), objects of reference, photographs and real objects to support the learning of individual students.
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