LVS Hassocks gets Busy with Christmas Crafting

17 December 2020 – Students at LVS Hassocks, an independent school in Sayers Common for young people with autism, have been busy this term, turning their hands to crafting to develop their business enterprise skills and raise money for the school.

Using natural items from the school’s estate, students across the school made, marketed and sold a wide range of festive items to family and friends, including wreaths, pomanders, bird feeders and table centrepieces, raising over £400, which will be invested into the school’s onsite café and outdoor learning areas.

The students chose what they wanted to make and held group discussions on the designs. Once the marketing was completed, they set about fulfilling the orders, with assistance from the outdoor learning tutors.

The school’s onsite café, which before the pandemic was open to the public, provides students with further real-life work experience, while the outdoor learning areas, which include raised beds, polytunnels and a shed, allow the children to develop their horticultural skills, growing fresh produce and flowers to sell in the summer term.

Head teacher, Jen Weeks, commented; “The students showed creativity and real entrepreneurial spirit, crafting samples, photographing them, developing order forms, and then making the goods to order.

“Our ethos at the school is to prepare our students for life after education,” continued Jen Weeks, “enabling them to develop the skills they need to realise their full potential. We’re delighted to be able to reinvest the proceeds in projects which provide the children with more practical opportunities.”