Ruardean Church of England Primary has become the first school in the Forest of Dean to gain a special award for its inclusion of students with autism.

The county council's Gloucestershire Autism Inclusion Quality Mark is an opportunity for schools to be recognised for what they are doing to promote the inclusion, motivation, progress and welfare of pupils with special needs.

Ruardean Church of England Primary received the award at a special celebration to mark its outstanding support to pupils with autism, including help from its specialist communication and interaction centre.

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other people. It also affects how they make sense of the world around them.

Cllr Richard Boyles, county council cabinet member for children and young people said, "The staff at Ruardean have gone the extra mile to support pupils with autism in their school - their specialist communication and interaction centre plays an important role into how that support is delivered. They are all very worthy of the Gloucestershire Autism Inclusion Quality Mark and should be very proud."

Simon Manning, headteacher at Ruardean C of E Primary School said "It's a great achievement by the school, I am very happy with the staff and everyone involved. As a school we aim to meet the needs of all our pupils and it's good to see that schools in Gloucestershire are getting recognition for their hard work".

Cllr Terry Hayle local county councillor for Drybrook and Lydbrook said "This is great news for Ruardean, it is a wonderful school with good educational support facilities and I feel they are very deserving of their award".

Latest figures indicate that approximately one person in 100 is on the autism spectrum. This suggests that in Gloucestershire there are about 8,580 people on the autistic spectrum and that about 1,632 are children and young people aged 0-19.

communication needs team) at Gloucestershire County Council and provides schools with the opportunity to gain recognition for the hard work they do to improve the learning experiences for pupils with autism.

Pictured left to right: Mark Wadsworth, specialist communication and interaction centre teacher and SEND co-ordinator at the school; Jayne Whittington, advisory teacher IMPACT - -including and motivating pupils with autism and communication needs team; Dr Deborah Shepherd, principal educational psychologist and head of the advisory teaching service; Simon Manning, headteacher and Tanya Walters, specialist senior educational psychologist, IMPACT.