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School support

School support in Western Australia

Everything for Western Australia in one place: government schools and the state funding scheme, the specialist and autism-specific schools listed here, and how enrolment works.

WA
Western Australia: Find a government school
Directory

WA Department of Education schools online directory. Search by suburb and filter by school type.

Education support schools and centres

WA has standalone education support schools and education support centres attached to mainstream schools, plus education support programs. 08 9264 4111 is the Department's central services and general enquiries line.

Autism programs

WA offers specialist learning programs for autistic students, with information available from the School of Special Educational Needs: Disability. WA Department of Education, enrolment framework

Disability funding

WA public schools are funded through the Student-Centred Funding Model, which includes an Individual Disability Allocation for eligible students and an Educational Adjustment Allocation for mainstream schools. The school applies, not the parent, so ask the principal what the school receives and how it is used for your child.

Specialist and autism-specific schools in WA

Start earlier than feels necessary

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.

Source: Aspect, enrolment and fees

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.

WA
Carson Street School

WA Government education support school

Year levels: Birth to Year 6, including an early years playgroup
Location: East Victoria Park, Perth

Western Australia's dedicated primary education support school, for children with disability including autistic children.

Who can enrol: Students need to meet the department's education support enrolment criteria, assessed case by case.
Fees: Government school, so no tuition fees.
WA
Sir David Brand School

WA Government education support school

Year levels: Kindergarten to Year 12
Location: Coolbinia, Perth

A K to 12 education support school for students with disability, including autistic students with high support needs.

Who can enrol: Students need to meet the department's education support criteria, with placement decided individually.
Fees: Government school, so no tuition fees.

Satellite classes run by a specialist provider

An autism-specific class run by a specialist provider like Aspect, but physically located inside a mainstream school. Your child is enrolled with the specialist provider and learns in a small class, with chances to join the wider school where that works for them.

WA
Telethon Speech and Hearing Outpost

Specialist program inside partner mainstream schools

Location: Perth metropolitan partner schools

Not a standalone school. Outpost places a specialist team inside mainstream partner schools to support children with hearing loss. Telethon's Talkabout program is early years therapy, also not a 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.

WA
WA education support centres and schools

WA Department of Education placements

Location: Across Western Australia

WA runs standalone education support schools plus education support centres attached to mainstream schools. The department's page lists both and explains eligibility.

Fees: Government schools, so no tuition fees.

Applying in WA

WA
Applying in WA
Mainstream enrolment

Contact the school principal. WA public schools enrol students with disability under the department's Enrolment framework for students with disability and must make reasonable adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education.

Disability funding

WA public schools are funded through the Student-Centred Funding Model, which includes a students with disability allocation. Families do not apply separately, so ask the principal how the school uses that allocation for your child.

Education support schools and centres

WA has standalone education support schools and education support centres attached to mainstream schools. Contact the Department for eligibility and application information. 08 9264 4111 is the Department's central services and general enquiries number.

Key contact

WA education support schools and centres.