- Artist in various different mediums and love to share this with others
- Love the outdoors, walking, running and dog-walks
- I am keen to organise family and friends social events
Sue Asher
Brinscall, Chorley,Lancashire
Summary
Dedicated Special Education Leader with expertise in delivering outstanding outcomes for pupils with Autism, Speech, Language and Communication Needs, and Cognitive Delay. Drove whole-school improvement by establishing a clear vision and fostering trusted partnerships with parents, Local Authorities, and multi-disciplinary teams. Prepared to implement proven strategies in diverse settings to enhance educational provision at Thompson House.
Overview
33
33
years of professional experience
Work History
Head teacher
Witherslackgroup
Chorley and Leyland, Lancashire
2006.09 - 2026.09
- Leader of a very successful school with mainly Outstanding grades, nothing lower than Good from Ofsted
- I used 5 year vision strategies to achieve exceptional goals, like being the first SEND school in Europe to become an Apple distinguished school and even through Covid, still to gain Outstanding due to our curriculum design that overcame the hurdles we faced at that time
- Collaborated with local authorities, receiving consistent praise for pupil progress and positive outcomes achieved at my school.
- Overseeing 100 staff, over two sites, including Senior leaders, Safeguarding team, Teachers, Pastoral, Clinical services, Teaching/support staff and auxiliary.
- Catered for 96 pupils aged 5-16 with autism, speech, language, communication needs, and cognitive delays, ensuring tailored support for individual learning needs.
- Developed a new secondary site from an equestrian property into an amazing new 'Farm school', using land based studies to develop exciting new learning opportunities for everyone.
- Implemented horse and animal-assisted therapies, enhancing pupils' confidence and self-esteem through experiential learning over 20 years.
- Applied quality of life principles daily, promoting healthy eating, activity, and sleep for pupils and staff.
- I work very closely with parents, who trust that I always have their child's best interests at heart, often going into multiple years without any parental complaints arising
Deputy Headteacher
Witherslack Group
Chorley and Ormskirk, Lancashire
2001.02 - 2006.09
Senior teacher
Nugent House, Nugent Care Society
Wigan
1999.02 - 2001.02
- Achieved recognition from senior leaders for exceptional curriculum planning, resulting in promotion to Senior Teacher to mentor colleagues in effective planning strategies.
- Taught a class of over 16 students with mental health needs, utilising ASDAN resources and extensive outdoor facilities to enhance learning experiences.
- Performed lesson observations to measure teaching performance and provide constructive feedback.
- Collaborated with teachers to understand and improve classroom conditions.
- Improved student educational plans by advising on course selection, progress plans and career decisions.
Teacher
Clarence House, Nugent care society
Southport, Merseyside
1995.09 - 1999.09
- Taught Science to secondary school pupils with SEMH needs, fostering engagement and understanding of scientific concepts.
- Collaborated with care staff, therapists, and an educational psychologist to support residential pupils' holistic development and well-being.
- Delivered alternative curricula to a mixed-age class of primary and secondary pupils, incorporating local stables, trekking centre in Wales, and outdoor education through residential excursions.
Teacher in a Primary School
Cop Lane County Primary
Leyland, Lancashire
1994.09 - 1995.09
- Delivered engaging lessons to year 4 students in mainstream classroom, fostering a supportive learning environment.
- Prepared creative teaching materials to motivate and engage students.
- Organised classrooms and created displays to encourage positive learning environments.
- Managed classroom resources effectively, ensuring materials were readily available and utilised efficiently for lesson delivery.
Teacher in a Primary School
New Longton, C of E
Preston, Lancashire
1993.09 - 1994.09
- Delivered engaging science lessons to enhance student understanding across all primary school classes
- Prepared creative teaching materials to motivate and engage students.
- Organised classrooms and created displays to encourage positive learning environments.
- Managed classroom resources effectively, ensuring materials were readily available and utilised efficiently for lesson delivery.
Education
Certificate of Higher Education - National Head Teacher Qualification
University of Manchester
Manchester2005-01
Certificate of Higher Education - Primary school teacher/Science
Lancaster University
Lancaster1993-01
Bachelor of Science - Psychology
University of York
York1992-01
Skills
- I am very skilled with all areas of Curriculum development, including developing bespoke curriculums to meet pupils needs and those that are linked to alternative curriculums, using animals and the outdoors
- I am an outstanding Teacher myself and I have supported a vast number of Teachers to develop and improve their own Teaching strategies
- I plan and develop everything around the child and in my last primary full Ofsted inspection, the two inspectors said 'If we had a special needs child ourself, we would move into the area, just so our child came to your school' Which was higher praise than any Ofsted grade
- Leadership development
- I have utilised the extensive benefits of horses and the outdoors for my whole career I now would like to combine the equine me, with the teacher me to an even greater extent to improve my own quality of life and also for those around me
- I have extensive knowledge of horses, owning a pony from an early age, growing up in pony club, becoming chief instructor, organising pony club camps I broke in my own horses, retrained them from the racetrack from the age of 14 I ran my own livery yards at the same time as teaching full time I have evented at BE Novice level, competed for riding club teams in all areas
Interests
Timeline
Head teacher
Witherslackgroup
2006.09 - 2026.09
Deputy Headteacher
Witherslack Group
2001.02 - 2006.09
Senior teacher
Nugent House, Nugent Care Society
1999.02 - 2001.02
Teacher
Clarence House, Nugent care society
1995.09 - 1999.09
Teacher in a Primary School
Cop Lane County Primary
1994.09 - 1995.09
Teacher in a Primary School
New Longton, C of E
1993.09 - 1994.09
Certificate of Higher Education - National Head Teacher Qualification
University of Manchester
Certificate of Higher Education - Primary school teacher/Science
Lancaster University
Bachelor of Science - Psychology
University of York