Find your local school
Use the ACT school finder to find your local public school. The directory also covers Catholic and independent schools.
Support in a mainstream class
Expect your local public school to welcome your child and make reasonable adjustments for them.
Support classes and special schools
ACT public schools also run small classes inside mainstream schools for students who need more support. Applications go through the school psychologist, with your consent. ACT specialist schools are for children and young people diagnosed with moderate, severe or profound intellectual disability, so an autism diagnosis on its own does not make a child eligible.
Who to contact
Start with your school. Contact disability education on 02 6205 6925 or disabilityeducation@act.gov.au. You can also call 13 22 81 (general government line).
02 6205 6925Specialist and autism-specific schools in ACT
No school or department publishes a standard processing time, so contact the school as soon as you are considering it, even a year or more ahead, and ask to join the waiting list while you are still deciding. This is general guidance from families rather than a published timeline.
Assessment requirements are set by each school, not by a national rule. Aspect, for example, asks NSW families for a diagnosis plus a psychometric assessment no more than two years old, and South Australian families for a second report confirming the diagnosis, so check what the specific school requires.
Fees, year levels and eligibility change, so every school below links to its own page for current details.
Standalone specialist schools
A dedicated campus where every student has a disability or is autistic. Your child goes to that school, not to a mainstream school. Some are run by state governments, some are independent or faith-based, and a few are autism-specific.
ACT Government specialist school
ACT Government specialist school
ACT Government specialist school
ACT Government specialist school
Support units and support classes run by the education department
A small class attached to a mainstream government school and staffed by that department, not by an autism provider. Names differ by state, and access usually runs through your department's own placement or access request process rather than the school itself.
ACT Government placements
The ACT runs four specialist schools plus learning support units and autism-specific units inside mainstream schools. Eligibility and the placement process are set out on the ACT Government page.
Applying in ACT
Contact the school principal and enrol through the ACT Education Directorate. Every child is welcome at their local public school with reasonable adjustments.
You can apply if you live in the ACT and your child has been diagnosed with an intellectual disability that is moderate, severe or profound, confirmed by a medical or allied health professional such as a paediatrician or psychologist. This means an autism diagnosis on its own does not make a child eligible. A child with autism qualifies only if they also have a moderate, severe or profound intellectual disability. Every child is welcome at their local public school with reasonable adjustments.
Canberra has four specialist schools, split by age and by which side of the city you live on. Preschool to Year 6: Cranleigh School for the northside and Malkara Specialist School for the southside. Years 7 to 12: Black Mountain School for the northside and The Woden School for the southside.
You can apply at any time of year. Start with a school psychologist, who must confirm your child meets the requirements before the application begins. If your child already attends an ACT public school, make an appointment with that school's psychologist. If your child is not enrolled in an ACT public school, email disabilityeducation@act.gov.au, say which specialist school you are applying to, and attach assessment reports written by a medical or allied health professional that set out your child's diagnosis. The Directorate confirms receipt, a Directorate psychologist may contact you for more detail, and you then receive a letter of offer for the school you applied to, another specialist school, or your local public school. You can request a review or appeal if you are not satisfied.
