For some Northern Beaches families, preparing a child with additional needs for high school starts well before Year 7.
Students currently travel from Manly, Freshwater, Dee Why, Newport, North Narrabeen, Belrose, Collaroy Plateau and elsewhere across the peninsula to attend St Edmund’s College, a specialist co-educational school in Wahroonga.
St Edmund’s supports students with mild to moderate intellectual disability, autism and sensory impairments from Years 5 to 12.
Its first Stage 3 class for 2027 has already reached capacity, and the College is now seeking expressions of interest for a possible second Year 5/6 class of another eight to 11 students.
Introduced in 2025, the program gives students more time to become familiar with the routines of secondary school. They follow high school-style timetables, move between specialist classrooms and learn to navigate the campus more independently while still in Years 5 and 6.
For Anna, whose son Charlie joined St Edmund’s inaugural Year 5/6 class, those extra years have made a noticeable difference.
“Joining in 5/6 meant he’s familiar with the school environment; he knows how everything works,” Anna said.
“He can really get himself around independently. Transitioning into high school is going to be so much easier for him because he’s got that familiarity, having been at the school for two years prior.”
St Edmund’s current Stage 3 class has 10 students, supported by teachers and other staff as they learn how to manage the routines that will become part of everyday school life from Year 7 onwards.
Year 5/6 teacher Michelle Le Patourel said she saw that independence develop throughout the program’s first year.
“At the beginning of 2025 there were mixed emotions as students started at a new school,” she said.
“By the end of the year they were happy, confident and had formed meaningful friendships, not only within their own class but across the College.
“It has been wonderful to watch them independently navigate the school, read their timetables and feel ready to embrace high school life.”
“It has been wonderful to watch them independently navigate the school, read their timetables and feel ready to embrace high school life.”
And there’s plenty happening outside the regular classroom, too.
Students participate in assemblies, sporting carnivals, camps and lunchtime clubs alongside older students. They use the library, take part in music and creative arts, and can practise everyday skills through St Edmund’s Mini Woolies, including purchasing items and handling money in a familiar retail setting.
For another Stage 3 parent, Amber, the move to St Edmund’s also changed how her son felt about school.
“He belongs here; he’s found friends that he fits in with,” she said. “He enjoys getting up and coming to school every day now.”
For families considering the possible second Stage 3 class for 2027, the College is inviting expressions of interest and offering tours of the program at its Burns Road campus in Wahroonga.
Scheduled Stage 3 tours can be booked through the St Edmund’s website, while families unable to attend those dates can contact the College Registrar to arrange a private tour.
More information about the Stage 3 program and 2027 enrolments is available here.
