Maple Hayes School is a specialist school for children aged 7 to 17 with Specific Learning Difficulties and Dyslexia. Its aims are to:
- Raise pupils’ self-esteem, self-confidence and expectation of academic success by giving them a fresh start
- Enable pupils to become independent, proactive learners so that they may compete with their intellectual peers in the education system
- Nurture pupils in a caring school community where each individual feels valued and included, and participates within an ethos of tolerance and mutual respect.
The school is run by father and son, Neville Brown and Dr. Daryl Brown, and I had the great pleasure of meeting them both during a visit to this fantastic educational facility. Neville took a first degree at Keele University before becoming an English teacher. He then interrupted his teaching career to do ground-breaking research into dyslexia, reading, writing and under-achievement at Aston University, obtaining a MSc and then PhD. In 1982 Neville founded Maple Hayes Hall School with his wife. Since then it has grown from strength to strength, with Neville now Principal and his son, Daryl, headteacher.
I was extremely impressed by the school, its staff and its pupils and would like to wish everyone at Maple Hayes all the best for the future.