Another Award Nomination!
Woodlands School Great Warley is delighted to have been shortlisted for “Special Needs Initiative of the Year” in the Tes (Times Educational Supplement) Independent School Awards 2019.
The Award recognises projects that have helped children with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) to fulfil their potential and improve learning outcomes. Winners will be announced in February 2019.
The nomination alone is a tremendous accolade for the small, local independent school. Shortlisted schools across the award categories include some of the UK’s most prestigious and renowned independent schools such as Eton and Wellington.
“Independent education in this country is truly world class. It’s one of our great success stories. And those shortlisted for the Tes Independent School Awards are the crème de la crème.
We received a record number of entries this year and the standard is the highest yet, so to be shortlisted is an extraordinary achievement for any school.”
This achievement is due to the extensive work Woodlands School has done over the last year to turn the way children with SEND are supported on its head, through a project called Project “I Can!”
Centering on a proactive approach, Project “I Can!” has seen various measures being put in place at the school to assess and identify each child’s needs as early as possible. Initiatives include close liaison between the Nursery and School SEND Coordinators, INPP intervention programmes for Year 1 and onwards, and early dyslexia screening.
Reception children enjoy outdoor learning at Woodlands School Great Warley
Woodlands School also provides convenient access to regular speech and language therapy and professional counselling sessions within the school setting, for those children who can benefit from it.
Headmaster David Bell explains: “We truly believe that one of the best things about our School is how we recognise that each child is unique. We do our utmost, whatever their academic ability, to meet each child's very different and individual needs.”
Another key part of Project “I Can!” was to ensure continuous contact and support for the parents of children with SEND. As such, parents are invited into the school to attend speaker sessions and workshops on different topics where relevant, from “ADHD/Behaviours of Concern” sessions to spelling workshops. The school has also initiated parent support groups which have proven very successful, and provides a wealth of resources for both staff and parents including access to books, handouts and online guides.