Francesca Blackburn can face some very different challenges to those of a mainstream teacher.

Francesca works in the Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) unit at Castle Hill School helping children suffering from ASD to develop lifelong skills and communication abilities.

Lucia Johnson in particular feels her daughter Chloe has reaped the benefits of Francesca's patience and understanding, saying that Chloe has developed more confidence since attending classes in the unit.

"My fondest memory of Chloe is when I took her along on the year six mainstream end-of-year journey to Downe. The children took part in a range of activities, one of them being abseiling. I was at the top of the climbing tower with Chloe and she was adamant she wasn't going to go down. However, her persistence and bravery helped her, and seeing her abseil down the tower was such an incredible achievement I had to call school straight away and ask if they would call Chloe's parents to let them know what a star she had been," Francesca said.

Within the Castle Hill ASD unit the school aims to provide an environment where children can be comfortable and learn to become effective communicators in a world which can be frightening and confusing for them.

"Children with ASD have difficulty interacting with other people and an inability to pick up on cues and body language which you or I would understand. I knew about ASD before teaching Chloe, as this was an area within which I was fascinated while teaching in mainstream schools for five years.

"I taught in the US for a year and it was there where I really became intrigued and wanted to learn more about ASD. I read lots of books, and wanted to learn more."

Francesca admits her days are exhausting but exhilarating. Since joining Castle Hill in 2004 she credits her colleagues' team effort and positive outlook in helping make the ASD classes successful.

"We are teaching the children skills such as self-care, social interaction and more appropriate behaviours as well as trying to make their world less stressful.

"The most rewarding part of teaching has been the relationships which can be built between me and the children. With children who have autism, this is very different but certainly no less gratifying."