Hi, I’m Fiona, and I work alongside Steve.

We met years ago working in a Special Needs school, where we quickly realised we shared the same frustration with the education system as it is, and how passionate we are about creating a space that supports neurodiverse young people who fall into that 'gap' between mainstream and SEN schools.

Often these are the EBSA (Emotionally Based School Avoidance) young people.

These amazing kids are considered, or feel, 'too special' for mainstream, but 'not special enough' for SEN schools. They want to learn, but don't have the right environment- a quiet, small and nurturing setting, which isn't run on a timetable, or have rules about uniform or hair styles (amongst other things).

And so 'Beacon Alternative Provision' was born. We offer 'temporary' (although it isn't always so) educational placements to students who are unable to attend mainstream. We can take students for a maximum of 15h a week, but their hours depend on the funding allocation granted by the 0-25 team at the Local Authority, so it is often less than 15h.

Who we are helping

We began with one lovely student, who had been out of education for months, her mental health was suffering, with suicidal thoughts and self-harm, and her family were at their wits end with frustration. After just a few weeks working with her, she grew in confidence, her attendance shot up to 100% with us and she found she could progress in her learning faster than she ever had at mainstream.

She's been with us for 2 years - preparing to move on to a vocational course in Hair and Beauty, with a smile on her face and belief that she is capable.

And she's not the only one...our next student had been suspended multiple times because she found the noise and chaos of the school too overwhelming, and needed space, so she left- her outbursts of frustration too much for mainstream to manage. No education for a year. Without Beacon, she would have few to no prospects of completing school with any qualifications. She needed someone to 'see' her, to believe in her and give her the right space to see how capable she is.

She is now preparing to take her GCSEs and a Functional Skills exam in English, with an offer of a place at Exeter College.

Why We Need Your Help

In just two years, we’ve grown from one student to nine—and we’re still receiving more referrals.

We registered as company, but wanted to ensure that our business model reflected our intentions, so all profits go back into the business to support the young people, and we established a Not-for-profit Community Interest Company.

Beacon Alternative School would love to one day open a new SEN school in Exeter that runs in the way our Alternative Provision does.

We are qualified specialist teachers, teaching English, Maths and other subjects, based around a termly theme, and incorporating preparation for adulthood (cooking, independent travel, budgeting, sewing, first aid etc). We are trauma-informed, providing students with a relationship based place of safety, re-building their confidence and seeing results!

We started in my dining room.

We now rent a village hall… packing everything away every day.

It’s not sustainable. Our young people deserve stability, consistency, a space that feels like theirs and where their work stays on the walls.

Our Goal

We want to create a permanent home for Beacon. A space with:

To do this, we need to raise £25,000 to match our own personal savings and secure a deposit for a suitable property.

Why It Matters

This isn’t just about a building. It’s about young people who are:

With the right support, we’ve seen them:

How You Can Help

This is about supporting the next generation of young people with two passionate teachers, who just want to make a difference. But on teachers' wages, we are not financially able to do it alone.

We need local support, the passion from others who see the future for these young people is far from bright without it - to put something towards this cause.

If you can:

…it will make a real difference.

Thank you so much for your support

Fiona & Steve

www.beaconprovision.co.uk