‘Be Safe, Be Joyful, Be Inspired’
Thank you so much for your interest in our school. We lead a great team of professionals who are committed to providing a safe, joyful and inspiring learning environment in which all our pupils can develop academically, socially, emotionally and morally to their full potential.
Our vision is to inspire all our pupils to learn with confidence, to help build resilience, and become well rounded individuals.
We are dedicated to providing outstanding education to young people with educational, social and communication, and emotional difficulties resulting from a primary need of social, emotional & mental health (SEMH), incorporating a range of therapies to provide support for the sensory processing needs of our young people.
Many of our pupils have needs stemming from trauma in their early childhoods and we use Trauma Informed Practice in all our work at Longdon Hall School. Trauma-informed practice is an approach to health and care interventions which is grounded in the understanding that trauma exposure can impact an individual’s neurological, biological, psychological and social development. As part of this we have a behaviour policy that is non-punitive and is not sanctions-based.
Our staff have a relentless determination to help every child who comes through the doors to succeed. We tell our children that it’s not what they’ve done in the past, but what they’ll do in the future that’s important. Our expectations are very high for behaviour, achievement and personal development, because we know that we can help children make much more progress than they would within a mainstream school environment.
With this in mind, we recognise that for many of our children the journey of education so far has been far from easy, which is why we think creatively about our approach to learning. We know each child well enough to be able to set ambitious, realistic targets and put in place a personalised education plan and support that is right for them.
We love nothing more than celebrating the achievements of our young people and take time to acknowledge the progress they make. We are delighted that our pupils feel confident to leave us after Year 11 to go on to further education, with most returning to mainstream education pathways having exceeded their own expectations. Due to this relentless drive of all staff to provide a safe, joyful and inspiring environment, pupils gain the skills to leave as well-rounded individuals.
Our school ethos has been defined through consultation with our whole school community including pupils, staff, parents/carers and wider stakeholders through a school provision review.
Collectively, we have decided that Longdon Hall embeds the following ethos:
- We have clear and high expectations
- We understand and support individual needs
- We provide space for a safe environment to learn
- We offer an inclusive and diverse curriculum
- We value our relationships with pupils, families, staff and the wider community
Rob Blyth – Head of School