HOLMES Chapel Comprehensive School is to undertake a trial with an Assistance Dog.

A school spokesman said: “As part of our commitment to providing the best support to all of our students, our SEN team are planning to trial some work with an Assistance Dog over the next few weeks.

“This will involve a fully-registered Assistance Dog, which already works closely with one of our students.

“The Assistance dogs programme is run by Autism Dogs CIC, who are approved by large companies such as British Airways.

“Their dogs have been chosen specifically for their character, intelligence and ability to work with people diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Condition (ASD).

“They are extremely used to working with children and have been trained to maintain a calm temperament.

“As part of the trial, the dog will be accessing some parts of our Learning Support department at certain times of the day.

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“It is not anticipated that the dog will be working in the wider school site, nor will he be in lessons.

“We anticipate that having him in Learning Support may also have some benefits for other students working in the department.

“We anticipate this being a successful addition to the SEN provision that we have at Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School.”