The specialist schooling phase is made up of a collective of schools and academies who seek to offer excellent provision for pupils with a range of additional needs across Plymouth and the wider region. We work together through the Special Headteacher Across Plymouth (SHAP) Association, in partnerships and singly to offer support to pupils within our settings as well as those in mainstream environments.



Schools represented by SHAP include: ACE (Transforming Futures MAT); Brook Green Centre for Learning; Cann Bridge School; Courtlands School (Transforming Futures MAT); Longcause School; Mill Ford School; Mount Tamar School; and Woodlands School.


The schools and Alternative Provision (AP) offer a variety of different provisions across the four aspects of the SEND Code of Practice to provide full coverage for every child in the city.

Sector Representation

Andrea Hemmens is the special schools and alternative provider representative on the Strategic Education Group (SEG).  Andrea is also the headteacher of Woodlands School.

Andrea can be contacted: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Outreach Offers from Plymouth Specialist Provision

There are a variety of offers from schools across the SHAP partnership which can be accessed by mainstream settings as detailed below.
(Download the 'Outreach Teacher Processes Flowchart here).

Specialist Outreach for pupils with Complex Needs

Plymouth City Council has seen a rise in the number of requests for places in their special schools. It has been recognised that some mainstream schools value support to meet the needs of some of their most complex young people. Plymouth City Council has appointed two special schools (Mill Ford and Longcause) to offer an outreach service for 3 days a week each, for two years. Both schools use their highly skilled teachers to deliver this service.  Their job as outreach teachers is to support mainstream schools as well as provide positive support and greater understanding of the issues that some children face when they attend a mainstream school.

 Once a child has been identified as needing support or a specialist provision this will be discussed at SMAP panel (please see flowchart for procedures).  If outreach support is needed,the Council will contact the Headteachers of both Mill Ford and Longcause. They will then be allocated a school for the support. The Outreach lead from the school will then contact them. They will then send out questionnaires and speak with the school to identify what support is needed, as well as the parents. An initial observation will take place and a report is written. This report will then be shared with the school and parents and discussed in a meeting. Visits to the child and school will then made on a half term or termly visit depending on the need of the child. The support will be reviewed every 3 months and further questionnaire will be sent out to the school and parents. The support will continue for as long as the school and child need. 

Points of contact: 

Mill Ford  Head teacher - Claire Wills (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
Longcause Head teacher and Outreach lead – Anne Hutchinson (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)