The Treehouse Trust run a primary school for children with varying degrees of Autism. Each year they have expanded to accommodate their existing children as they grow older and accept a new intake of younger children into their Reception class. Their aim is to build a new school capable of taking these children through primary and secondary education, and to prepare them for life as an adult in the community.

The design team have spent time with the trustees, staff and children in their current temporary accommodation, learning about the organisation of the school and the method of teaching that they use. At the same time, preliminary investigations have been carried out on the proposed site for the new school, which is a sensitive site with an open land designation. The Trust hope to build on part of the site and at the same time take the opportunity to reinforce the ecological capacity of the site and explore its potential as a recreational resource for this school, nearby schools and the local community.