Although we only achieved charity status in February 2016, we have been running special needs ski trips for more than 25 years. Our focus is the annual special needs ski trip to Italy, where we take a party of about 140. We are also keen to help others to make outdoor and adventure experiences available to young people with special needs living or attending school in Surrey.
We believe that the challenge, excitement and fun of adventure activities should be possible for most of the young people in our special schools. Although skiing is our vehicle, the benefits of the trip last way beyond the week away. We have evidence from the young people, their parents, carers and staff that the week massively increases their self-esteem, confidence and resilience – attributes that will help them throughout their lives.
Most of all, the week is a fun time when young people from many different types of special school and needs can socialise and have a great time – as do all of us.
Mr Alan Cottle MBE
Our History
The first Surrey Special Needs ski journey took place in 1998 following two years of planning. During that time a number of the staff who would lead the first trip, attended ski leader training and specific adaptive skiing courses. There was significant expertise amongst the staff group which included a leading head teacher and the LA’s outdoor education adviser.
The first trip involved five special needs schools in Surrey and 60 students and staff took part. Since then it has grown and most years we now take in the region of 140 students and staff from between 10 and 14 of our special schools. Every year, apart from the third, we have been to Prato Nevoso in Italy, which has become our home and where we are well-known and welcome. A wonderful by-product of our involvement in the area is that the resort has become a recognised base for skiing with people with special needs. On several occasions, trainee instructors from the Piedmonte region have worked with us so that they learn about working with young people with special needs. The group has regularly been featured in local newspapers and radio.
Our Charity’s Purpose
- enable young people with disabilities to take part in a residential week abroad with other young people from other special schools in Surrey
- provide an opportunity for young people attending special needs schools in Surrey to participate in an adventurous activity (skiing) where their needs can be met
- provide grants to families where necessary so that financial hardship is not a bar to attendance
- provide grants in order to allow young people with special needs, attending schools in Surrey, to take part in other learning outside the classroom activities
- aid the growth of independence of the participants through providing them the opportunity to spend time away from their primary caregivers
- allow the primary caregivers of participants some space to spend time with each other and/or with other children in the family
- reduce the amount of fundraising required by schools to fund sufficient volunteer helpers
- provide specialist training where possible and required to staff working in the outdoors with disabled young people.
We greatly appreciate the
kind assistance of:
Trustees
Alan has had the good fortune to spend much of his leisure and working life in the outdoors, initially as outdoor adviser for London and then Surrey. Much of Alan’s time was training teachers and youth leaders but, increasingly, he enjoyed working with young people with special needs, going hillwalking, climbing, caving or, for the last 25 years, skiing.
In the beginning, Alan worked to support a brilliant and groundbreaking headteacher, Ruth Buchan, providing advice about taking special needs students to a dry ski slope. After talking about it for a while Alan and Ruth decided to aim higher and so the first special needs trip happened in 1998 following two years of planning and training.
Alan has organised 23 of our ski trips and is the founder of the the charity SPENSOL.
Simon is our charity treasurer and a member of the Ski Trip, he first went on the trip as an assistant with one of our Surrey schools in 2006 and has been on every trip since. As an experienced Skier, Simon is also one of our on-slope volunteers who has been through training to assist with the adaptive skiing be that taking the ‘sit ski’ for young people with limited mobility, backwards skiing to guide nervous skiers on the nursery slopes or assisting those who transition to the higher slopes and the chair lift.
Simon is a business consultant working in corporate operations and finance, he has been a school Governor for 12 years and has participated in holidays for young people with additional needs since he was 16 and lists Skiing as one of his passions alongside Rugby and family.
Ailsa is an experienced SEND practitioner with over 15 years experience working with young people with SLD, autism and complex needs. She is currently Assistant Headteacher at Woodlands School, Surrey, with responsibility for Preparation for Adulthood, post school transitions to college/ adult social care and off-site enrichment opportunities - which all link well with the aims of SPENSOL. Ailsa is the party leader for the school’s ski trip and is committed to ensuring all students have access to a variety of outdoor learning opportunities and residential trips.
Ailsa has over 40 years of skiing experience with family across Europe and in New Zealand, she has been a trustee with SPENSOL since 2019.
Mary has been a Headteacher for over 15 years working with children and young people with SEND in mainstream, schools, Alternative Provisions and SEND schools across Hampshire, Wokingham and Surrey. Whilst Headteacher at Philip Southcote School in Surrey, Mary experienced her first SPENSOL ski trip in 2018, and became a Trustee with SENSOL in 2023.
Mary is a mother to children with special needs and understands the benefits of residential visits for the children as well as respite care for the family. Mary is also a Trustee for the local secondary school where her son attends.
Vicky has worked in SEND for the last 15 years. She started as a teacher in an SLD/complex needs school in Portsmouth, teaching PE. Vicky went on to introduce residentials to the school, and when she moved to Surrey, Vicky was excited to get involved with the Surrey Ski Trip.
Vicky led the ski trip for the school for 8 years before relocating to Chichester as a Deputy Head, where she continues to offer the trip to pupils at her current school.
Vicky was introduced to skiing whilst at school and knows how amazing the experience of skiing and residentials are for young people whilst at school and is privileged to work with SPENSOL offering this opportunity to pupils with SEND.
Vicky has been a SPENSOL Trustee since 2019 and has specific responsibility for Safeguarding.
Jason is an experienced skier of over 25 years and has attended over 15 SPENSOL ski trips. He is the father of a special needs child and has worked at The Park School and Brooklands College SEND department as a Classroom Assistant.
Jason is passionate about fundraising for charity, raising £11.5k kayaking a marathon for premature babies and £1,500 for SPENSOL. In his work as design engineer at CBRE with charity partners of MacMillan, Alzheimer’s society and shelter, Jason has worked to help raise £4M at corporate level.
Jacqui Reeves is an experienced member of Surrey County Council Childrens Services and has been on the Ski Trip for over 20 years, firstly as a school staff member and currently as a SPENSOL volunteer and co-leader of the group.
Jacqui’s organisational skills are legendary, if you can’t find it Jacqui will know where it is. If we haven’t got it, she will find it.