SCN0670
Written evidence from Harlow College
1) After working closely with a former HMI in 2015 and in light of the 2014 Special Educational Needs and Disabilities reform (Children and Families Act 2014) Harlow College undertook a review focusing on a “Person Centred Approach” with a curriculum that wraps around the four strands of the “Preparing for Adulthood Agenda”:
a) Employment,
b) Independent Living,
c) Health and well-being and
d) Friends, relationships and community
2) This was developed and introduced in September 2016 in partnerships with the local authority, parents, young people and employers. The improved local authority partnership ensured that high needs funding was used effectively, enabling us to recruit and develop a strong team of support workers. Job roles were created to incorporate employment coaching, moving away from more formal classroom teaching.
3) The curriculum has a core structure for all learners however each learner’s journey is individualised; the team have a fluid way of delivering the curriculum and use a flexible model of support, with a wrap-around approach to each learner. Each learner has an iPad which has led to the transformation of teaching, learning and assessment. Learners keep video diaries, allowing them to demonstrate their skill development. These are shared at home and provide parents and carers with an essential insight into their progress. Apps like Trello are being used to organise tasks and help interaction and visualisation, overcoming the heavy reliance on the written word which often caused frustration. Our pedagogy has improved through learner feedback, with iPads providing a holistic assessment for learning and support tool. All reasonable adjustments can be accommodated as learners can engage more effectively and express their feelings through non-traditional approaches.
Impact
4) This year’s achievement is 97% (an increase of 24% over two years) and attendance has improved by 7% over this time and is above the college average. We have seen a growth in student enrolments this year and a 50% rise in applications. 78% of supported interns have achieved employment, 43% securing full-time employment. Students work through their personalised targets on their learner journey evidenced through a detailed Individual learning plan, 1-2-1 keyworker support and the use of systematic instruction. Learners and parents/carers provide constant feedback and ensure we are regularly improving our approach. 100% of learners now complete meaningful work experience, which links to their aspirations and develops skills for supported employment and living in the community. They also participated in the National Citizen Service Programme involving a four day/three night residential where many stepped out of their ‘comfort zone’ for the first time. We were praised as a model of national best practice by NCS for this inclusive approach.
5) At the beginning of the project we were identifying that many of our learners arrive at college very dependent on the adults around them to shape their lives. With the ‘towards independence and work’ group the opportunity to co-create their learning programmes provided a real opportunity to address this. They experienced working alongside staff in an adult to adult relationship to plan their learning and make decisions around how they want to be supported for different tasks.
6) The learners broke down the learning outcomes and discussed each week as a group what tasks and resources they could use to achieve that learning outcome. The impact of this project on learners has been seen in an improvement of engagement through observations and video evidence of their discussions and the 50% of students who had to take time out every lesson because of panic attacks and other behaviours now stay engaged for the whole time. Students understand that they can take the lead and that their ideas have value and can benefit others. Students having a voice, staff learning from the students, higher aspirations of staff and students and students of themselves have all had an impact and clear sustainable outcomes from this project are the independence and confidence that have remained with our learners.
7) Communication and confidence building has been developed through expressive arts and specialist work with stakeholders to ensure we can give our learners opportunities that they may not have outside of college. Through community inclusion projects, learners have been involved in local projects and valuable work experience, recently assisting with the preparation for our local Harlow Town Park to be inspected for a Green Flag Award. All this being achieved through the successful support strategies we have in place.
8) We are fortunate in having a wide field of potential employers for our Supported Internees, ranging from an artisan bakery, where we have placed a learner who would struggle in a large working environment, to a large distribution centre where we have placed five learners with the potential for a high level of independence in the workplace. Our Employment Coaches constantly build on past successes when approaching new employers and, as the list of known local and national companies who are employing our learners on Internships and beyond grows, so the confidence of new employers about the prospect of taking part in this scheme is expanding. Employer feedback about the impact on their workforce and how working practices within the organisation are more inclusive and supportive tells us that these organisations are achieving an appreciation of a more diverse workforce. Participation in the scheme of supported internship naturally allows staff to embrace equalities practices in real life situations. This aligns well with businesses wanting to meet their corporate social responsibility.
February 2019