Join the Leicestershire Autistic Society (LAS)- Just £5 per year   

LAS is a parent run group for parents, families and carers of anyone who is autistic in Leicester City, Rutland & Leicestershire.

It was formed over 20 years ago and provides support, information and advice to families and professionals dealing with Autism. They are a volunteer led organisation, where the vast majority of volunteers are parents or carers of someone with Autism. One of their main aims is to continually strive to raise general awareness of Autism.

LAS is also represented on City and County Autism specific forums where they campaign for further improvements in: diagnosis, the provision of relevant specialist education services, making Child/Adult service planning more ‘autism friendly’, accessible play and leisure services for Children and Adults with Autism, and the provision of better support for adults with Autism. They publish a brilliant newsletter booklet 3 or 4 times a year full of advice, offers and events information LinkUP which you can read on their website or as a member get a copy by post.

LAS Parent led meetings held at Oaklands school on the second Tuesday of every month 10-11.30a.m.

Please join us for guest speakers and workshops, as well as time to share our experiences and offer mutual support as parents and carers of autistic children. Free to members and non-members alike. All welcome from the county or city.

Dates: November 12th; December 10th 2019; January 14th; February 11th; March 10th; May 12th; June 9th 2020

WEBSITE: https://www.leicestershireautisticsociety.org.uk/    LAS helpline: 0116 2916958

We were extremely proud of children from Owls and Badgers classes who went to Curve theatre to perform in the Big Sing event yesterday. 150 children performed from 8 schools in and around Leicester. After travelling to the theatre by public bus, then a busy morning of rehearsing, the children from our Chestnut pathway sang and signed with great enthusiasm and enjoyment. The audience joined in with songs, learnt some new Makaton signs and were all uplifted by the feeling of joy in the auditorium. We were thrilled to have parents and Governors join us. Every one of the children had clearly worked very hard in preparation to learn the words to all of the songs, to sing in time and follow the tune, and to recall the signs. They all said that they had enjoyed the event and this was evident by the effort they had put into the performance and the smiles on their faces throughout. A very big Oakey 'Well done!' to all of the staff and all of the children who took part.

Parents, carers and friends of Oaklands are invited to come along to The Worlds Biggest Coffee Morning in aid of Macmillan on 27th September between 10am and 12pm. We look forward to seeing you for a cuppa, cake, raffle and more.

Welcome back to a new school year at Oaklands! I hope you all had a wonderful summer.

We were all so pleased to welcome our children back in to school yesterday. We had a fantastic start to the term. The children all came in calmly and ready to engage with the staff teams. The new children have settled extremely quickly and we have been thrilled to see them smiling and having fun straight away. The other children have been so kind and welcoming towards them. We are very proud of them all! Your children have been a credit to you.

To our new parents joining the Oaklands community, I would like to offer you a very warm welcome. There is always a lot going on at Oaklands. We do hope you will be interested to find out about what is happening through our newletters, by following us on Twitter: @OaklandsSchool­_  and on the website www.oaklands.leicester.sch.uk.

There have been a number of changes to the school during the summer break. Our reception area has been changed, ensuring it is more secure, but it also looks lighter and fresher (Spot Oakey on the photo in the new reception area!). We have also got a new ICT suite, with large touch screen computers for our children to explore. I’m sure this will make a big difference to their learning.

We have also changed the way in which children address us this year. To make adult names easier for children to be able to recall, rather than having a Mr/Mrs/Miss at the beginning when using surnames, we felt that using our first names would help. This also reflects the family atmosphere that we feel is so special at Oaklands. So, children are now having fun trying to get used to our first names!

We are pleased that we now have a Family Support worker, Dhrupti Patel, working at the school every Wednesday and Thursday. She will be available for parents to contact for advice, practical help and emotional support. We will give further details in due course of drop-in opportunities and the types of advice she can help with.

Thank-you for sending in PE kits. If you have not already completed the parent, contact forms could we please request that you do so as soon as possible.

Some dates to book in your diary are a MacMillan coffee morning on Friday 27^th September, and parents evening, which will be on Wednesday 23^rd October 3.15-6.15pm. We do hope you will be able to join us. The Autumn term is always very busy, with a range of learning experiences including trips and celebrations. We look forward to seeing your child exploring and enjoying learning as they make progress this term.

As always, we are more than happy to help you, should you have any queries at this stage in the term. Please do use your child’s home/school contact book, or phone us and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can, should you want to talk about anything.

Best wishes for a happy, exciting term ahead,

Sarah Osborne

Headteacher

Prepare well for transitions to new classes/schools. Use photos & visits to support understanding. Send photos home to look at & talk about. Pass on info about preferred method of #communication, likes/dislikes, #sensory needs, vulnerabilities.#autism

We are delighted to announce that LAS will be partnering with Oaklands School in Leicester, an Autism special school commended by NAS for Furthering the Knowledge of Autism.

We will meet from 10-11.30 every 2nd Tuesday from September but will launch on the 2nd July to introduce ourselves and find out what parents & carers want from the group. In the past we’ve had guest speakers and workshops, as well as time to share our experiences and offer mutual support.

All are welcome to attend the Launch meeting 2nd July at 10am-11.30 at Oaklands School, Whitehall Road Leicester LE5 6GJ. (0116 2415921) There is some parking onsite in the bus lanes.

Please contact LAS at leicestershireautisticsociety@gmail.com OR www.leicestershireautisticsociety.org.uk or call the school for more information

'Thank-you' to the #VarietyClub and all the incredible staff @TwycrossZoo who welcomed 40 of our children, their families and staff members last night. The zoo staff made sure it was a fully #inclusive and #accessible event. Everyone had a fantastic time!

Recent findings in @journalautism identified that Julia, a muppet character with autism in @sesamestreet, helped increase knowledge & understanding of #autism. Make it your mission to discuss characters, films, books with autistic characters! #inclusion