About Abbot’s Lea School
Abbot’s Lea School is an outstanding specialist school in Liverpool, supporting over 270 students aged 3–19 with autism and associated learning differences. Renowned for its innovative approach to education, the school combines specialist support, academic development and life skills training to create engaging learning experiences that help every student reach their full potential.
Identifying the Challenges
As an active learning institution, the school required the use of technology which would help enhance the teaching process, assembly programs, collaboration between teachers and interaction with guests.
In order for this to be achieved, prior to the installation of the LED screens, presentation and assembly programs held at the sports hall used two screens that had to be manually placed into position and hooked up whenever they were required.
The current audio equipment present in the hall was also becoming outdated, failing to meet the standards of sound expected. Adjusting the audio controls was also a challenge since one had to navigate several rooms before accessing the control room. In addition, lack of wireless microphones limited flexibility in events like assemblies and presentations.
Within other parts of the school, the headteacher lacked appropriate technology for conducting meetings, whereas the visitors in the reception had minimal exposure to the school’s activities and achievements.
The school wanted a modern, intuitive solution that would improve day-to-day operations whilst creating a more engaging experience for students, staff and guests.
Delivering the Solution
By working closely with the IT & Data Manager at the school, we were able to design and implement an AV solution that was suited to the needs of the school.
The key element of the work included installing a large screen 163” LED screen in the school’s sports hall.
In order to facilitate easy and simple sharing of content, Clevercast wireless presentation sticks were used for easy connection between the teacher and guests without requiring any wires for connecting them to the screen.
An improved audio system consisting of the Biamp speaker set-up was also installed in the auditorium. The volume knobs were put in a box that was located outside the AV room for ease of operation by staff members.
To provide complete peace of mind, the LED display is protected by a purpose-built motorised roller shutter. Located within the sports hall, the screen can be safely concealed when not in use, protecting it from accidental impacts during PE lessons, sports activities and day-to-day use. This gives the school confidence that its investment is safeguarded while ensuring the technology remains available whenever it’s needed.
Additional wireless handheld and lapel microphones were supplied, providing greater flexibility for assemblies, performances, presentations and guest speakers.
Beyond the sports hall, a new Clevertouch LUX 86″ interactive display was installed to support larger staff meetings and collaboration sessions, while digital signage was introduced within the reception area to create a more engaging welcome experience for visitors.
The Impact
The new technology has transformed how the school uses its spaces on a daily basis.
The teaching process can be enhanced through the use of the large LED screen in order to provide interactive and captivating classes as well as presentations to the learners.
One area in which the technology has been particularly successful is during physical education classes. Interactive exercise videos are shown on the LED board. This allows students to participate in the activity, which includes moving around and getting involved in the physical education class. As an illustration, students get involved in playing with drums as well as drumsticks while participating in an interactive drumming programme.
The school has also found that the technology creates an immediate impact on visitors.
According to the IT & Data Manager, the technology often “sells itself”. Visiting schools and external organisations are regularly impressed by the facilities, particularly the LED screen and the simplicity of the wireless presentation system, helping showcase the school’s commitment to innovation and modern learning environments.
With better sound quality, the use of the room has been improved, while the installation of wireless mics and easy-to-use controls has made life for the staff much simpler.
Thanks to the success achieved through the renovation, there have been new plans to expand the AV refresh project throughout the whole school. This summer, more displays will be installed in all classrooms, meeting rooms and staff areas.
