Skills for life planner

The school is a designated secondary school for pupils with medical and physical impairment, as well as pupils with Asperger’s Syndrome. It achieved Beacon status for social inclusion in 2000 and was awarded the North West and Greater Merseyside Inclusive Schools Award in 2004.

Its performance management system and staff development policy cover all members of staff. “Better trained staff are better able to support pupil learning,” explains school business manager Betty Renshaw. All staff have one-to-one interviews with their line manager twice a year to review their performance and update their personal development plans. Skills for life is an important part of this: for example, one teaching assistant was supported through a GCSE in mathematics to better enable her to support the pupils she works with. The skills for life programme runs during and after school hours, and most training is provided internally. Staff absence is managed by releasing one or two people at a time for training.

Ofsted inspectors have commented that “support staff contribute very effectively to the progress of pupils to whom they are attached and often to the work of the class as a whole. Support staff are an integral part of the teaching team, and their contribution is often excellent.”