Start with the pupil, not the checklist
Start from the pupil’s sensory and communication profile, agreed with them and parents, then apply the National Autistic Society’s SPELL principles: structure, positive, empathy, low arousal, links. Most are low-cost. The reason to begin with the profile is practical: autistic pupils differ, so the same change can settle one pupil and overload another. A one-page profile that records what helps, what triggers distress, and how the pupil shows they are struggling turns a generic tips list into a plan you can act on National Autistic Society. You do not need to wait for a diagnosis to do this. Good autism practice is needs-led, so you can put these changes in place for any pupil who is autistic or showing autistic traits while they wait to be assessed.
Low-cost adjustments, grouped by SPELL
Once you know the profile, work through the five SPELL elements. Almost all of the changes below are no- or low-cost shifts in practice and environment rather than new equipment or extra staffing National Autistic Society.
- Structure: a visual timetable, a clear routine, advance warning of changes, and predictable seating so the day is not a series of surprises.
- Positive approaches: build on the pupil’s strengths and interests, set high but realistic expectations, and praise specifically rather than generally.
- Empathy: read behaviour as communication, check your understanding with the pupil, and give processing time after an instruction before repeating it.
- Low arousal: cut sensory load with felt pads under chair legs, paper towels instead of a hand dryer, ear defenders, reduced wall clutter, a screened calm corner, and permission to take movement breaks.
- Links: keep home and school in step, hand over well at transitions, and make sure information about what helps travels with the pupil between staff and settings.
The legal frame, and why to plan ahead
Autism counts as a disability, so under the Equality Act 2010 the school has to make reasonable adjustments to stop a disabled pupil being put at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers, including auxiliary aids and services Equality Act 2010, s.20. The duty is anticipatory: you are expected to plan and review adjustments in advance, not only react once a pupil is in crisis, and you cannot pass the cost to the pupil or their family Equality and Human Rights Commission. The Autism Education Trust’s Standards Framework gives a recognised, DfE-backed structure for embedding this across a school rather than leaving it to one teacher Autism Education Trust.
Where the law comes from
Related
This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.