Bradfields Academy is a specialist SEND provision which caters for students aged 4-19 who have co-morbidity of complex learning disabilities and difficulties including speech, language, emotional, sensory, physical, and autistic spectrum disabilities. In 2014, we converted to an academy and became part of the Fortis Trust. The academy provides outreach support for nursery, primary and secondary schools/academies in Medway and Kent. Bradfields delivers the EYFS and National Curriculum as well as Accredited External Qualifications via subject specialist teachers and is underpinned by the aims, values and curriculum intents of our curriculum model. Our Bradfields Curriculum Model is underpinned by 4 main pillars: Excellence, Character, Learning to Learn and Personalisation. Through this our curriculum is planned, delivered and assessed through a pace and level appropriate to individual need. Within our classroom settings students access learning that develops concepts, builds on skills in a sequential manner and support progression for their later lives. Bradfields Academy is split into six different communities: Primary, Birch, Maple, Pine, Oak and 6th Form. In the Primary and Pine communities’ students are taught in their classroom base with some accessing accredited course lessons. In Maple, students are taught in their class base but also access lesson with other teachers. Skills Builder is being used across these three communities. The academy became involved in the accelerator plus programme to further support the learning and progression of essential skills within our curriculum for our students. Staff are using a common language and a consistent approach.
Teachers were already teaching and developing essential skills on a day-to-day basis within their classrooms. Through implementing Skills Builder, it has drawn teachers' attention to how important these skills are for our students and how we could improve our practice in developing these skills with our students and then capture their development. We are exploring ways in which current practices and interventions used with our students support the building of the essential skills.
During implementation of Skills Builder, students have been introduced to the essential skills and their icons. Through the student’s day, teachers are referring to the skills they are building upon within their learning. The key skills underpin all areas of learning within their curriculum and are further supported through the individualistic approach of students learning that incorporates EHCP, speech and language and other targets. For the students engaging in Skills Builder, communication is a big focus as well as supporting their regulatory behaviours. Skills are built upon using a range of interventions and programmes such as attention autism, SCERTS, Zones of Regulation, character strengths and investors in pupils.
As we have been implementing a new curriculum model across the academy as well as other supporting programmes, we will be focusing on how we can further develop our practice in supporting our students in developing their essential skills. To further develop how we assess students progress against the expanded framework and to develop and add smaller steps for students that are working below level 0 to build on their learning of essential skills. To further link the Skills Builder framework within our policies, individual students targets and learning. As there will be new staff starting in the academic year, it is important that they receive training in the framework and using the hub, as well as updating any changes to existing staff.
