Disrupting Disadvantage: Inside Hester Hornbrook (Special Assistance School)

In this episode of Talking Teaching, Dr Sophie Specjal explores the story of Hester Hornbrook Academy, a fee-free, Independent Special Assistance School (SAS School) in Victoria supporting young people aged 15–25 who have experienced significant barriers to education, including trauma, mental health challenges, family violence, housing instability, or prolonged disengagement from schooling. The episode examines how learning and wellbeing are intentionally designed together to re-engage students and achieve successful outcomes and a sense of belonging. Joining host Sophie Specjal are Sally Lasslett, Executive Principal, and Elida Brereton, board member and long-serving former principal. Together, they unpack what makes SAS schools like Hester Hornbrook distinctive: a healing-oriented approach to education, flexible learning environments shaped by student voice, and a multidisciplinary model that brings wellbeing and learning together without lowering expectations. The conversation explores the realities of re-engaging students who may not yet feel safe in “traditional” schooling, the importance of staff support and supervision in high-complexity settings, and why personalised learning plans and applied learning projects can provide a powerful bridge back to achievement. They also reflect on the sustained national growth of Special Assistance Schools in the diverse Independent School sector over the past decade, discussing why these models have expanded rapidly in response to increasing student complexity and disengagement, and what this means for the future of schooling in Australia.