Welcome to the Pupil Support Dept.

Members of Staff : Avon - Ms M Thomson, Mr K Rae , Mr C Marr: Forth - Ms I Jean-Pierre, Mr C Ralph, Ms A Milligan : Kinglass - Ms M Taylor, Ms M Smith

Mr Rae helps with the use of ict in the classroom Mr Rae is on hand to assist with the use of ICT

The Pupil Support Department recently purchased 15 wireless laptops to be used in class. Staff can access them via a rota system and they are transported throughout the school in a secure custom built trolley.

At present Pupil Support within the Academy is divided into 2 main areas :

Support for Learning (Room 158)
Support for Behaviour and Social Emotional Needs (Room 153)

New legislation - the Additional Support Needs Act - will soon be coming into force. The implementation of this Act will require that all pupils with ongoing significant needs, no matter what their nature should be supported in the manner that best meets these needs.

This means that one member of Support Staff will try to meet the needs that pupils may have from the following areas -

Learning
Medical
Behaviour
Social / Emotional

The holistic approach towards meeting pupils' needs has been readily embraced by Staff in the Academy, along with the principle of an inclusive education for all pupils.

Staff from pupil support have 2 main roles :

Pastoral Support - Pupil Support Staff contribute to the general support offered to pupils by the House Team. They may act as Case Co-ordinators for named pupils from within their House who have been identified as having Additional Support Needs.
In the role of Case Co-ordinator they will:

Be the main member of staff to oversee the general well-being and progress of the allocated pupil, offering individual support
Liaise with parents, carers and any outside agencies that are involved with the pupil
Arrange and attend meetings, panels etc., writing reports, maintaining records as necessary

Support for Learning the responsibilities and tasks undertaken by our team in this area include :

Liaison with our feeder Primary Schools to try to ensure that the transition to Secondary is smooth and supportive for every pupil not just those with special needs
Writing, monitoring and reviewing Individualised Education Programmes (I.E.P's) for those pupils who require them
Putting special arrangements into place for pupils with identified and specific needs
Ensuring that the terms of the Additional Support Act are met for pupils with identified Additional Support Needs
Supporting pupil learning in the wider school setting i.e. linking with subject teachers to help with developing suitable materials, in class support for pupils, offering advice on suitable teaching strategies etc. etc.
Supporting pupil individual learning/ needs by extracting them from specific classes for periods in the Pupil Support Bases
Running focus groups to support small groups of pupils with specific needs e.g. dyslexia
Delivering an alternative curriculum which meets the needs of the pupils involved in a more meaningful way than the courses generally offered within the Academy i.e. Asdan, Duke of Edinburgh Award, Supported Study
Co-ordinating special timetable arrangements for pupils who require them
Keeping pupil records updated