Outstanding Barnet Special School celebrates “Freshfields” week.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) December 13, 2010 -- Oak Lodge School will today mark the start of "Freshfields Week", a weeklong celebration of the financial contribution of city law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer to the school charity, “Hearts of Oak”. Since it was formed in 2006, the charity has raised almost £250,000 for projects at the school. Personal contributions from partners and staff of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer are responsible for the most significant portion of this.

Oak Lodge is a special school in East Finchley with designated Specialist School Status for Cognition and Learning. Catering for 165 day students aged between 11 ‐ 19 who have a wide range of learning difficulties, Oak Lodge was awarded an "outstanding" grade by a recent Ofsted inspection.

Each afternoon during Freshfields Week, teams of lawyers from the firm will participate in school life, helping in classrooms, joining in sports and helping to decorate and commission the “Freshfields Café”, prior to its grand opening of Friday December 18 at 11am.

Built and equipped entirely using donations from Freshfields, including a kitchen, cafe area, and shop, the Freshfields Cafe will provide an environment in which six form pupils can gain quality work experience in a real world environment, preparing food, serving customers and selling craft merchandise.

“The generosity shown by our friends Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has directly benefitted every pupil of our school, helping to enrich their education and provide them with equipment and experiences that might not have otherwise been possible,” said Head Teacher Lynda Walker. “Freshfields week is designed to celebrate this and to give partners and staff a chance to experience all the good that has resulted from their contributions at first hand”.
For more information please contact Stephen Ferguson: borofergie@gmail.com

About Oak Lodge School

Oak Lodge is a special school in East Finchley with designated Specialist School Status for Cognition and Learning. Catering for 165 day students aged between 11 ‐ 19 who have a wide range of learning difficulties, Oak Lodge was awarded an "outstanding" grade by a recent Ofsted inspection. In particular the school provides a range of teaching methods and interventions informed by knowledge and understanding of autism, which have been developed over many years. Around 50% of students currently attending Oak Lodge have a diagnosed Autistic Spectrum Condition or an associated pervasive developmental disorder. http://www.oaklodge.barnet.sch.uk/

About Hearts of Oak
The school charity, Hearts of Oak, is dedicated to helping pupils overcome their barriers to learning and to help realise their full potential as they journey into young adulthood, with the aim of making an enduring difference to the lives of these young people, and to provide them with both the tools and opportunities to develop skills that will last for a lifetime. Hearts of Oak is run by a team of unpaid volunteers, including parents, and teachers of pupils at the school, with expenses (at less than 3%) are amongst the lowest of any UK Charity.

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