Our Proprietor - Rachel Girling.

Rachel Girling is the director of Sowing Seeds Alternative Learning (SSAL). She founded Sowing Seeds with a heartfelt vision to create a school where children and young people who have fallen through the gaps of the education system can find safety, belonging, and hope for the future.

With over 20 years of experience in education, Rachel’s career and personal journey have given her a wealth of expertise in supporting children and young people with autism, ADHD, Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA), social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs, trauma, and severe social anxiety. She has worked closely with families whose children often struggle to attend or engage in a traditional school environment. For many, mainstream schools cannot meet their needs due to their size and limited resources, while specialist settings may feel inappropriate or inaccessible.

Sowing Seeds was founded to bridge this gap offering a personalised and inclusive pathway for learners who do not fit neatly into either mainstream or special school. Rachel’s vision is to provide a calm, nurturing, and relational environment where children and young people are not defined by their struggles, but supported to discover their strengths, rebuild confidence, and develop the skills they need to thrive.

Rachel has held senior leadership roles in education, including as an English Curriculum Leader with responsibility for literacy and cross-curricular opportunities, and later as an Assistant Principal responsible for Student Achievement and Student Experience. These roles gave her deep insight into how literacy, curriculum design, student experiences and student voice can transform outcomes. They also strengthened her belief in the importance of listening to children and families, ensuring that provision truly reflects their needs and aspirations. This professional background has directly shaped Sowing Seeds into the inclusive and relational setting it already is today.

At the heart of Rachel’s philosophy is the belief that relationships come first. She knows that progress only happens when children feel safe, understood, and truly valued. That is why Sowing Seeds places equal emphasis on creating a strong, trusted staff team around every learner. Rachel believes passionately that the right adults, with the right training and care, can make the difference between a child shutting down and a child flourishing.

As proprietor, Rachel ensures that Sowing Seeds operates in full compliance with the Voluntary Non-School Standards, while never losing sight of our central purpose: to give every learner a personalised, ambitious, and compassionate education. She works closely with LAs, Trusts, Headteachers and SENCOs to embed a curriculum that balances wellbeing and independence, academic progress and vocational learning.

• Rachel is committed to:
  Providing a personalised education that adapts to each learner’s needs and profile.
• Offering pathways for children with social anxiety or school-based trauma, where small steps are celebrated as major achievements.
• Ensuring robust governance and accountability, with safeguarding and wellbeing at the centre.
• Building a strong, compassionate staff team trained in relational, trauma-informed, and neurodiverse approaches.
• Preparing every young person for their next steps — whether in further education, training, or employment — with the confidence, resilience, and skills to succeed when they are ready.