Additional Support | Chaigeley School

Chaigeley provides a broad range of additional support for our pupils. The pastoral care of pupils is an essential element of meeting their special needs and making progress. On a daily basis, pupils have access to the Pupil Support and Therapy Services (see links) for both timetabled or ‘drop-in’ support as/when needed.

The links between staff have been recognised by Ofsted as “fostering pupils enjoyment and achievement positively”. We also strive to develop positive relationships with parents/carers of our pupils , and with relevant outside agencies, so that each individual pupil gets the support they need to succeed at school.

Therapeutic Support

Therapeutic support is considered an important part of the overall care for children who experience emotional, behavioural and social difficulties. The goal of therapy at Chaigeley is to enhance the development and personal wellbeing of the pupils, as well as provide advice and support for staff. By offering psychological support to the pupils we can support them to reach their true potential, both academically and personally.

Concerns leading to referral may include:

Anger/Temper
Fighting
Sadness
Low Self Esteem
Aggression
Worry
Lack of respect
Lack of co-operation
Difficulty concentrating
Problems with friends
Poor Self Image
Difficulty forming healthy relationships
Poor communication/social skills
Difficulty in understanding or dealing with emotions and feelings.

In support of addressing behaviours displayed, Chaigeley have a therapeutic team that can offer an assessment, intervention and outcome process. Therapeutic sessions can take on a one-to-one basis, in pairs, or in small groups.

The Therapy service at Chaigeley currently includes: Mentoring, Coaching, Anger Management, Counselling, Bereavement Counselling, Psycho-Educational sessions re: substance abuse, Speech and Language Therapy, weekly visits from a Psychology Assistant and regular visits from a Chartered Clinical and Forensic Psychologist. We are introducing
Play Therapy in the near future too.

REFERRAL

Pupils are often referred by staff but they can self-refer too. From September 2014 pupils will also be able to self-refer via the VLE. Parents/Carers are also welcome to refer or request support. We have a Therapy Coordinator who facilitates this service and also researches additional therapies valuable to our pupils and seeks to develop the department to deliver these services.

Support is provided by external agencies as and when required

Dual Registration

There are times in a young person’s educational career when a limited placement at a special needs school will help him to overcome the behavioural, emotional or social problems he displays. But retaining links with his mainstream school is important. When this is identified, the school works in partnership with the Children’s Services and the mainstream school. A typical example of how Chaigeley would support this need would be for one of our staff to accompany the pupil on the day or days that he is at his mainstream school.

Pupil Support Services

The pupil support team are an experienced group of staff members who are on duty every day. They carry out practical tasks, such as ensuring all pupils are safe and accounted for, supporting specific lessons etc. but they are also on hand to deal with any issues which may arise during the school day. These may include: providing a ‘time-out’ facility for distressed or agitated pupils, mediating between pupils, helping pupils to reflect upon their behaviour, working individually with pupils – either in the classroom or designated work area, escorting pupils to medical/dental appointments, attending multi-agency meetings, to name just a few areas where they support pupils on a daily basis. The pupil support team has strong links with the therapy service, and also the Student Council.

Speech & Language Therapy

The School engages the services of a Speech and Language therapist who to work with pupils and provide training to staff.

Play Therapy

The Play Therapy program and has enlisted the services of David Taransaud, a well respected practicioner in the field to lead the initiative.

About David: David Taransaud is a psychotherapeutic counsellor and tutor at the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education. He has over 15 years experience working with challenging youth in one of the most deprived boroughs in London.Author of: ‘You Think I’m Evil: practical strategies for working with rebellious and aggressive adolescents’, and regular contributor to ‘Play Therapy Magazine’ and ‘Children & Young People’ the professional journal for counsellors and psychotherapists.

Taransaud frequently presents workshops across the UK and abroad on how to connect, empathise and form a genuine working alliance with troubled and troubling young people.Taransaud also works as a foreign consultant in Pakistan and travelled to Uganda where he independently set up an Art Therapy service in an orphanage for former child soldiers and young people affected by conflict and trauma. His travel journal is available on YouTube.

Supported Mainstream Placement

As with Dual Registration support, we also support pupils who are making a return to full time mainstream schooling following a longer period at Chaigeley. The re-integration back to mainstream is phased over a period of one or two terms, with the pupil spending increasingly more time at the new school each half-term. In the initial stages, a member of staff will accompany the pupil until he feels comfortable and confident in the new setting.

Team Teach

In school we have 3 staff trained as tutors of Team Teach. This training is for all members of staff that work directly with the young people who display challenging behaviours.

Training includes:

How to reduce the use of physical intervention and risk
The use of verbal, non-verbal de-escalation strategies before positive handling techniques are required
Using the least intrusive positive handling strategy and a continuum of gradual and graded techniques
Legislation and policy

2 inset days are set aside each year for staff training.

Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing

At Chaigeley School we value the importance of recognising and promoting good mental health and wellbeing in our pupils’ and staff.

What is mental Health?

“ A state of (complete) physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”

“ The emotional and spiritual resilience which allows us to enjoy life and survive pain, disappointment and sadness. It is a positive sense of wellbeing and an underlying belief in our own, and others, dignity and worth”

The World Health Organisation

We are developing a whole school approach to promote resilience and improve emotional wellbeing, preventing mental health problems from arising, and providing early support when they do.

We want to use different activities to inform our pupils’ what mental health and wellbeing is all about, listen and support.

We want to train our staff so they are well prepared to support pupils’, parent / carers

Below is a list of some useful resources and websites that can be easily accessed to provide further help and support.

Internet searches and safeguarding

leaflet Explaining CAMHS Referral to Parents

Leaflet for Pupils Explaining Mental Health

managing_stress_in_schools

Mental Health Awareness – Surviving and Thriving

Mental Health counselling

Mental Health poster

Mental Health

Pupil Wellbeing Ambassador Programmes