Minerva Virtual Academy Avis 

As CEO of Sensational Minds, an autism, ADHD and dyslexia assessment and post-diagnostic support service, a key part of my role is building meaningful connections with providers who share our vision and values. We are always seeking safe, nurturing, and truly understanding environments for the children and young people we support, and Minerva Virtual Academy is exactly that.

From the very beginning, Liz Parry has been exceptional. Taking the time to connect, travelling to Colchester, and sharing the Minerva story with such authenticity and passion. It was clear straight away that this was something special.

Since then, we have referred children to Minerva who were previously unable to access mainstream education due to environmental factors and significant distress. To now see those same children thriving academically, socially and emotionally is incredibly powerful. It is not just education, it is transformation.

To know that there is a pathway forward for the young people we assess, one that aligns so closely with our values as a service, brings a huge sense of reassurance and hope for families.

Every single member of staff at Minerva who contributes to this level of care, understanding and provision deserves recognition. What you are creating truly changes lives.

Liz, thank you for continuing to share this journey with us. The difference you make is immeasurable.

Once you have processed the inescapable truth that a bricks and mortar school, one that suited your other 3 children so well, is failing your 4th, it’s uncharted waters.
My advice - grasp the nettle, embrace the notion that we do not have cookie cutter kids and then do your research! Home schooling comes in different guises, Minerva was the perfect fit for my son who needs direction, face to face engagement, encouragement and a sense of community - studious independent working in splendid isolation is not his gig.
Is his world a little smaller, undoubtedly; has personal hygiene taken a bit of a hit, I’m saving a fortune on Lynx Africa; but is he learning and is he happy - absolutely. Whatever your reasons for exploring home schooling, take it from me, Minerva is best of breed.
You are only as happy as your unhappiest child; I am happy to report that the temperature in our household is creeping back up to optimum.
You don’t have to navigate the choppy, uncharted home schooling waters alone, Minerva will hold your hand.
Come on in…. the water’s lovely!

As a family we rate MVA very highly. Our daughter is one of those who was 'lost in the middle' - not able to cope with mainstream but not quite having complex enough needs requiring the expertise of a specialist setting either. The state system was breaking her (and us all), so we felt we had no option but to look for an alternative. That's when we found MVA. It sounded ideal for what we needed; flexible but structured, traditional but modern, familiar but fresh, supportive and caring, with a child centred approach. Most of all though it was their pastoral approach that appealed. Her Mentor has been great, its a lovely relationship that ensures she has a point person when needed. The compassion with which MVA approach education, whilst still offering a robust academic experience, is a stark contrast to our previous experience. Initially it was a leap of faith, even though I knew we'd made the right choice, it felt difficult at first to rid myself of the old stereotypes of what education looked like and it was an adjustment for me. That said it was a pretty easy and rapid adjustment when I saw the transformation in my daughter. Her attendance and enjoyment is night and day to her previous settings and we have found MVA to suit her really well. It takes time to build up friendships but the in-person school trips do gradually help with that. No setting is perfect, but what we have found so refreshing is their openness to feedback and their desire to get it right. Plus the availability of senior staff to discuss problems/issues and the willingness to work truly collaboratively (rather than paying lip service) has been key. It's also been a relief that I didn't have to become my daughter's teacher, I'm still mum, and school is still school but without the negative connotations! I'm so glad we found MVA as I dare not think about where we would have been otherwise. It won't be right for everyone, but it fills a huge gap in the context of education in the UK and I can see it becoming a standard option in the future. We would choose MVA time and again based on our experience.

MVA was a godsend to us after our child struggled with mainstream. The onboarding was comprehensive (both for parents and students)and the pastoral care has been second to none. Academically my child has been stretched where necessary and supported in areas of need. I would recommend MVA to anyone looking for an anecdote to the rigidity of mainstream schooling. The mentor system is also an amazing support for pupil and parent with someone on hand for queries who really ‘gets’ your child.

MVA has a dedicated and caring team who always put their pupils’ wellbeing and success first. They create a supportive environment where students feel valued and gives them the space to grow in confidence and learn to the best of their ability!

Having worked with the team, they are lovely to work with and it is clear that they have a deep care for the students.

We worked with MVA as an advertiser and the whole process was incredibly smooth from start to finish. The team were lovely to deal with and made everything feel easy and well organised.

Liz in particular was brilliant, friendly, responsive and incredibly on it throughout. A real pleasure to work with. Highly recommend!

MVA is fantastic.... the fact our daughter has a personal mentor every week has made an incredible difference. My only wish was that we'd found it sooner. We started in March last year and haven't looked back.

The communication has been exceptional, they have been so great at helping us with the transition from our mainstream school. Understandably, we were apprehensive at first as this was a completely new concept to us, but it’s safe to say this has easily been the best decision we could have made. My advice would be to trust your gut and go for it!