The Heath, Halton, has achieved the IQM Inclusive School Award.
Context
The Heath, now based in their new purpose built, state of the art campus buildings and grounds is a larger than average sized, welcoming and extremely impressive. It is an 11-16 secondary school serving the local community, with 1192 students on roll.
The Health CARE Values
The Heath CARE values – Co-operation, Aspiration, Resilience and Excellence frame the way the school and its staff think about what it is be a Heath student. This includes the ways pupils work whilst in school and what they hope to become in the future.
Positive Relationships
It is very clear to see from the evidence of this and previous reviews that members of the school community enjoy positive relationships built upon a mutual respect that creates a harmonious and productive environment within which our students thrive. The school has an excellent curriculum offer that is broad, balanced and devised with the needs of students at the heart. The excellent teaching staff and superb pastoral structures enable students to feel safe and happy in school, this was very clearly demonstrated by the Head Girl during a tour of the school and by the students I spoke to during the review. Everyone involved with the school is extremely passionate about delivering the highest academic standards and encouraging every student to fulfil their potential wherever their talents and interests lie.
Extremely Positive Impact
The school and its staff continue to have a very real and extremely positive impact on their students’ ability to access appropriate learning and timely interventions, aligned with an unwavering and uncompromising ambition for everyone including adults who work in the school as well as students. This continues to be a school that constantly evolves its educational and inclusive practice for the benefit of the staff, the students and their families. A place where superb care, nurture and support naturally occur, that has been enhanced by the new state of the art building that they now inhabit, providing a happy, stimulating and vibrant learning environment with a focus on helping students to develop the skills, they need to be effective independent learners and positive members of their community and society. It is clear to see that the school`s actions to care for its students is in my judgement superb.
Observing Lessons
During the review, there were opportunities to see the school as it went about its normal routines highlighting superb inclusive practice in all interactions seen between staff and students. I was able to participate in a tour of the school observing lessons in progress and students making their way to and from lessons and have discussions with staff that clearly demonstrated their superb inclusive ethos and culture. It was humbling and illuminating to listen to Head Girl who was a superb advocate for the school. She was very clear that the school and its extremely inclusive staff had helped her and the other students to achieve to the best of their abilities.
Discussions with Key Staff
Discussions with key members of staff were extremely useful in confirming along with conversations with students that The Heath continues to address all 8 elements of the IQM award. This was further reinforced during a lengthy conversation with the AHT with responsibility for Safeguarding across the MAT. We were able to discuss in some detail the schools highly inclusive transition programme and how it is adapted to suit the incoming needs of students though the work of the Student Welfare Assistant who coordinates the work. There was also a discussion of an opportunity to visit ‘The Centre for Student Intervention – CSI’ that has been relocated to a more expansive and usable space and renamed ‘The Cloud’. The area consists of a suite of rooms offering a multi-functional support area with an emphasis on learning, all these rooms are well-furnished and resourced and provide students with a comfortable and appropriate learning environment. Opportunities for curriculum intervention, academic tutorials, key skills intervention, Dyslexia support, personalised learning programmes, ICT support, homework support, Early Bird and After-School enhanced learning are available. In addition, opportunities and programmes for individual and small group intervention to support the emotional health and well-being of our students are available.
The Cloud
The Cloud encompasses the work of a number of highly effective practitioners including the SENDCO, Inclusion Officer, Learning Support and Dyslexia Specialist teachers, a team of experienced Teaching Assistants, a Behaviour Team, Academic Learning Mentors and trained Counsellors. Together the team meets the needs of students in dealing with barriers to success, be they learning, behavioural or emotional. The team includes an in-house mental health and case management team and works in partnership with parents and multiple agencies including Educational Psychologist, Social Care, Education Welfare, the IWST team, CAMHS, LA Specialists for a variety of need including ASD, Speech & Language, Visual Impairment, Hearing impairment and many more. The completion of ILPs, IBPs, PSPs and CAFs, as well as responsibility for Child Protection referrals form part of the integrated inclusive working promoted through this superb resource.
Progress Coordinator
There was also an opportunity to talk to the Progress Coordinator Year 9 about the looked after children in this year group where there is a disproportionate number of CLA students each with their own unique needs. While also discussing how the school is supporting their needs with particular reference to the Flagship Project, outlined above. During the conversation in terms of wider support and mentoring of the CLA students we touched on the possibility of tracking CLA students’ successes beyond the school and then possibly utilising them as mentors for current CLA students that may well support increased engagement and improved outcomes for the students involved.
Behaviour Liaison Coordinator
I was able to talk at some length with the Behaviour Liaison Coordinator looking at her role and how she supports CLA Students, which was an informative and interesting conversation with the member of staff described as ‘School Mum’ due to the highly effective and inclusive way she works with students and families. She is an advocate for CLA students across the school and provides a complete and wide-ranging service that covers the full spectrum of educational, academic, social and pastoral needs of the student cohort. She and the school should be extremely proud of the way in which she accomplishes her role and offers such a superb level of support to the students.
Find out more about the IQM Inclusive School Award
If your school is interested in obtaining the IQM Inclusive School Award or you wish to talk to a member of the IQM team please telephone:
028 7127 7857 (9.00 am to 5.00 pm)
or email: [email protected] for further details.
Want more information on the IQM Award? Click here to request your free IQM information pack.