Personal and social development
Students are encouraged to be as independent as possible and provided with plenty of opportunities to learn about things that matter in day to day living, such as shopping, eating out, handling money and acquiring life skills. They are supported in this by timetables that give them a clear picture of the day’s activities and individual activity schedules that break key tasks down into small parts, which the students can more easily manage and master. The students’ academic, personal and social achievements are celebrated and praised so that students at all levels have high levels of self-esteem and confidence.
The students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is strongly promoted through the many daily activities that are on offer and through planned visits to a wide range of diverse places of interest. Daily whole school assemblies provide an excellent opportunity for all staff and students to join together as the school community and are thoroughly enjoyable occasions.
Students have weekly PSHE lessons where they learn about personal hygiene, practise their skills of shopping, cooking, preparing drinks, and explore environmental and social topics. Students have regular access to a purpose built ‘life skills’ kitchen where they prepare snacks, learn how to operate the washing machine and carry out food technology activities.
What Ofsted says...
Students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. Excellent relationships coupled to lots of praise and encouragement significantly boost students’ self-knowledge and self-esteem.
