Pastoral Care

At Hendal Primary School we pride ourselves on providing a Nurtured Approach for all of our children. We have kind and caring staff across school who have the needs of all children at the centre. We know that for some children the calm classroom is a perfect learning environment and all of their needs are met by the teaching staff and the nurture from their teachers.

All staff have received full training on ‘Early Trauma’ and have worked closely with Wakefield Authority  to develop a relational policy and approach used across the school. Staff have also completed Level 1 and Level 2 training by Wakefield Authority on how to support children with ASD. This training has equipped all staff to offer support to the children in their care.

Hendal Primary was selected to represent a Wakefield Mainstream Primary school and worked closely with Educational Psychologists to understand and implement strategies, policies and approaches to support all children with a particular focus on children who had experienced Early Trauma. 

We are aware that at times some children made need some time in a quieter space to regulate or manage their emotions for a variety of reasons and we have worked hard to create areas and ‘safe spaces’ that are readily available for children.

We also have a calm and welcoming nurture room which is run by  Mrs Knowles (SENDCO), Miss Walsh (Learning Mentor) and Miss Groves (Special Needs Assistant). This is a safe space that is used by a large number of children from EYFS through to Year 6. 

Throughout the day there are interventions taking place for identified children led by Miss Walsh, Miss Groves and all of our skilled Special Needs Assistants. Some of these take place in the Nurture Room, our ELSA ‘Hive’ or in interventions outside the classrooms.

Our skilled Special Needs assistants have received further training on specific programmes or interventions recommended by advisory teachers and use these to support children across school.

Interventions

At Hendal Primary School we work closely with parents and external agencies to provide a wide variety of interventions. The interventions can take part as a small group or can be targeted to individual pupils following programmes provided by external agencies. Miss Walsh and Miss Groves carry out assessments to ensure they plan, do and review children’s progress over time. They also work closely to ensure the interventions support the academic and emotional development of children when in their classroom.

The interventions that take place include:

• • Talk About– An intervention aimed at primary school children for developing self-awareness and self-esteem. It also promotes children’s communication interaction through group activities. 
  • Lego Therapy– Social development programme for young people with social communication difficulties. It focuses on working as a team, developing team working skills, cooperating, social and communication interaction and the development of language skills.
  • Teadorescu– A programme for the development of fine motor skills to promote handwriting. Beneficial for children with visual perception problems.
  • Fit To Learn– A programme for developing fine and gross motor skills to support children with motor coordination difficulties.
  • Specific Learning Programme– A programme to help with handwriting, spelling and English language.
  • Zones of Regulation– An intervention to support the development of strategies for children to be able to use to help control and regulate their emotions.
  • Self Esteem– Groups to promote children’s self-esteem and confidence to develop their engagement within their classroom, work and peers.
  • Mindfulness for children – The purpose of teaching mindfulness to our children is to give them skills to develop their awareness of their inner and outer experiences, when we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we’re sensing in the present moment rather than rehashing the past or imagining the future.
  • Meditation for children– using breathing techniques to promote a state of calm whilst developing children’s own emotional control which then impacts on themselves and others.

Our aim is to be available to support you and your children when difficulties arise over behaviour or other concerns at home, in the community or at school. We will make home visits; give advice and signpost you to helpful services. We have a range of experience and expertise to draw on from working children and families over a number of years. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’d like our support. Either ask at the school office or call 259465.