About William Morris School

As you might expect of a school named after an inspirational artist, designer, craftsman and writer, creativity is at the heart of everything we do at William Morris School.

For us, creativity goes beyond imagining what might be possible: it’s about making those possibilities a reality.  It involves not only coming up with new ideas, but also the dedication and determination to put those ideas into practice.

Above all else, it’s about making a real and lasting difference to the lives and prospects of our pupils.  That’s what William Morris School is about – crafting a positive future.

William Morris School is an independent special school for children and young people with complex learning needs and associated social, emotional, and behavioural difficulties.

The school – together with its sister school Cotswold Chine School – is one of the few educational establishments in the country to adopt a truly ‘trauma informed’ and ‘trauma responsive’ approach to care, therapy, and education.

Set in a tranquil rural location on the edge of the Cotswolds with easy access to main transport routes, we are a co-educational school which can accept up to 50 pupils between the ages of 7 and 19. As well as providing places for day pupils, the school can also offer boarding accommodation for 14 pupils for up to 39 weeks of the year.

All of our pupils are supported to achieve external accreditation for their learning through a range of examinations including GCSEs, BTECs, A Levels, Functional Skills and Entry Level Certificates.  We also believe that creative pursuits bring various psychological benefits and play an important role in helping young people to build cognitive, physical and social skills.  With that in mind, the curriculum has a strong emphasis on arts, crafts, textiles, woodwork, photography, music, sport and horticulture.

Catering for a range of complex needs

Our highly skilled team of specialist teachers, carers, and therapists have a wealth of experience in dealing with a variety of developmental, relational, educational, care and therapeutic needs including:

  • mild to severe learning difficulties
  • relationship and attachment disorders
  • complex and developmental trauma and other difficulties associated with childhood trauma such as hypervigilance and chronic hyperarousal
  • global developmental delay
  • mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, emotional/mental distress, social phobia, and obsessive-disorder
  • neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, sensory processing difficulties, ADHD, Tourette’s syndrome, speech and language difficulties, dyslexia, dyspraxia, oppositional defiant disorder, and foetal alcohol syndrome

A Novalis Trust organisation

William Morris School is part of Novalis Trust, a Gloucestershire-based charity dedicated to the provision trauma-informed, attachment-focused and relationship-based care, therapy and education for children and adults.

The other organisations within Novalis Trust are Cotswold Chine School (a residential special school and children’s home for children with complex learning needs) and Paradise House (a home for adults with learning disabilities).

As well as sharing the same ethos and values, all three organisations share management, administration, maintenance, training and other resources in order to ensure that consistently high standards are maintained across the charity.

Novalis Trust has demonstrated an unparalleled commitment to providing the highest quality service that I have ever observed in 40 years of practice

Kevin Ann Huckshorn Ph.D, MSN, RN, CACD