Our Charity
We welcome you to West Kirby Educational Trust: a charity changing children's lives since 1886. Founded and operates our schools West Kirby School and College and Acre View Primary School. located in North West England.
Our vision is to be “A nurturing community: embracing inclusivity & empowering potential”, across our schools and beyond.
We deliver an ambitious and diverse curriculum within our neurodiversity-affirming settings. By promoting self advocacy and independence, our children and young people shape their own pathways to achieve their aspirations and thrive in society.
Our Inclusion Services teams are an intrinsic part of our pupils’ education, facilitating effective learning, personal development, and empowering success. This includes Clinical Psychology, Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language Therapy, Home School Liaison, Medical and Pastoral Care.
Beyond West Kirby Educational Trust
We are committed to developing inclusion best practice beyond our schools. As an organisation, our aim is to increase our training and support offering across the community. We aim to achieve this through:
- Embrace: our outward-facing, Inclusive Education & Clinical Consultancy, delivered by West Kirby Educational Trust. In partnership with schools, we offer Inclusion Reviews, Consultancy Services and resources to support effective inclusion best practice implementation & ongoing development. There is also the opportunity to join our Inclusion Hub.
- Partnership working with SEN teams in local schools
- Signposting to free relevant training & resources
- A range of free neurdiversity & inclusion webinars aimed at schools and professionals
- Parent & carer neurodiversity workshops
The story of our charity...
The organisation has been supporting children since the late 1800s, with its original purpose as a convalescent home; formally & legally recognised in 1924 as The Children's Convalescent Home, West Kirby.
By 1959 the name changed to West Kirby Convalescent Home and School to reflect the move away from convalescent towards education. The charity 'West Kirby Residential School' was founded and first registered on 22 September 1962, with the aim of providing education and care to children and young people with complex special needs. In 2024 the charity's name was changed to 'West Kirby Educational Trust' to reflect the changing organisation; operating West Kirby School and College and Acre View Primary School.
Today, our vision is to be “A nurturing community: embracing inclusivity & empowering potential”, across our schools and beyond.
In 2024 we celebrated a centenary year, read our brochure below to find out more:
Meet the Charity President
Mr. Anthony Shone is President of the charity. Anthony has lived on Wirral all his life and has been involved in a number of voluntary and charitable activities including serving as a Non-Executive Director of an NHS Hospital Trust.
Anthony has had a long relationship with the school, beginning in the mid-nineties when he led a fundraising appeal to repair the roof of the school building. Through the successful completion of this project (and rising pupil numbers), it gave the momentum for the school to become the outstanding establishment it is today. A year or two later much to Anthony's surprise but delight, he was invited to become President of the Charity, and he has served in this role ever since.
Friends of the Charity:
The Charity is delighted to be supported by:
Mr. B Boumphrey
Mrs. J Brewster
Mr. D Brewster
Mr. M Calver
Mrs. R Calver
Mr. K O'Brien
Mrs. C O'Brien
Mr. M Potts
Mr. W M Barton
Mrs. H Corlett
Mr. M Dickinson
Mrs. R Elston
Mrs. A McAfee
Mrs. E Bateman
Mr. J Greenhalgh
Mrs. V Daglish
Mrs. A Barton
Mr. T Marshall
Mr. M Paddon
Mr. A Shone
Mrs. WE Shone
Mrs. I Wylie
Mr. J Wylie
Mrs. W Robinson
Mrs. P Earlam
Mrs. M Lumb
West Kirby Educational Trust is a charity operating in England & Wales, registered with the Charity Commission under the charity number 207790. Company Registration is 0200018.