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The school Nurse Team is employed by East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust to care for the children during the school day and to manage their health care in liaison with parents and other professionals. They deal with the arrangements for school medicals and any ailments or accidents that occur while she is on the premises. The role of the school nurse is an important aspect of your child’s time in school. Please keep the nurses informed of any changes or additions to medical information so that they may work effectively in partnership with us all. If a pupil is unwell during the school day, the School Nurse may consider it necessary for the child to go home. Collection of the child will be the responsibility of the parents and, therefore, it is essential that telephone numbers are kept up to date to ensure that you can be contacted.
The Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) Department supports pupils to establish and develop their functional receptive and expressive communication. Currently the SALT team consists of 3 SALTs working the equivalent of 6 days across the week. The current skills mix is 2 days Band 7, 2 days Band 6 and 2 days Band 5. The therapists are supported by SALT assistants whose working pattern covers 51/2 days provision across each week. Both assistants are Band 4s.
The SALT team work within a Tiered model of intervention. As all pupils at Amwell View have an EHCP the SALT team provides intervention based on the hours identified and agreed for speech therapy within these plans. All pupil's access the Universal level of support which includes staff and parent training, open door policy for advice and annual reviewing of each pupil's individual communication snapshots.
All teaching assistants in the school will access a specialist Elklan training course during their employment. This course is run by a SALT and Elkan Tutor. This is practical training for staff working within a special school provision for pupils with severe and complex learning needs. It equips staff with ideas and methods to functionally develop and encourage pupil's interaction and communication, collaboratively with the SALT team and teachers. The SALT team work closely with the schools Senior and Middle management teams to identify and input specialist communication aspects into curriculum development. For example the ongoing work on using the Hertfordshire Communication Framework to support communication target setting.
Pupils on caseload receive both targeted and specialist support. The SALT team work in class, run specialist communication groups e.g. Makaton signing and VOCAs (Voice Output Communication Aids) and work with pupils on a 1-1 basis.
The SALT team are in regular contact with parents and provide an annual opportunity for a focused consultation session. To provide consistent holistic intervention the SALT team will make home visits where the need is identified and agreed with parents. To ensure consistency of approach and expectation these will usually be made with the relevant class teacher.
Access to meaningful communication is supported by consistent implementation and development of a range of low and high ACC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication). These include : objects, TOBIs (True Object Based Icons), photos, widgit symbols, Makaton signing, switches and voice output communication aids. The school has a number of eye gaze devices.
The SALT team is responsible for assessment and development of appropriate eating and drinking plans for those pupils presenting with dysphagia. These are reviewed regularly on an MDT basis working closely with the school nursing team Paediatric Consultant. The SALT team provide annual updated eating and drinking training to the whole school staff.
The Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy team consists of Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and Therapy Assistant Practitioners (TAP’s) who provide therapy time within the school setting. They work closely with other members of the Multidisciplinary team such as Paediatricians, School Nurses, Speech and Language Therapists in the school.
The focus of physiotherapy intervention is to work with school staff in different areas of the school to enable pupils with physical difficulties to access the curriculum and reach their full functional ability. Sessions can be individual or group in various settings such as the physiotherapy room, classrooms and soft play area. Physiotherapy staff work with school staff to develop programmes for the pupils plus support is given with use of equipment as part of the child’s 24 hour postural management. This 24 hour postural management also translates into the home setting where physiotherapists will work with their occupational therapy colleagues to ensure this is emulated at home also.
Occupational therapy input focusses on providing assessment, advice and support around developing functional skills and independence, which School staff will be supported to implement in the classroom. This includes the provision of supportive seating as part of 24 hour postural management which enables good positioning for accessing the curriculum. Occupational therapists also work with the TAPs in the pupil’s homes to ensure the carry-over of advice into the home setting and model good practice. The Occupational therapist can access and provide equipment in the home such as specialist seating, splints, sleep systems, bathing and toileting equipment and hoists.
Parents of pupils who have physiotherapy or occupational therapy input are welcome to contact the team through the school to discuss their child’s treatment and management at school as well as any advice they would like for home.
Contact the service directly: 01923-470-680 - Option 3
Music Therapy is a part of the multi-disciplinary team approach at Amwell View, helping and supporting the pupils to be ‘ready for learning’.
As each child is unique, each will have its own special response to music and sound. The therapist seeks to encourage this natural response by responding themselves with music/sounds/words to any way the child is able to communicate.
For some it may be the sheer excitement and joy of making as much ‘sound’ as possible on the largest of the instruments or perhaps discovering that their voice can become an ‘instrument’ of expression. For others it may be a fleeting glance towards a sound source, the motivation to reach out, or the first tentative experiments to use their voices. The use of music (sound) as an expressive medium comes before the acquisition of language and can be particularly useful for encouraging early communication skills.
It is the relationship with the pupil through the shared use of sound and the intensive interaction that is an important part of this way of working. This musical relationship can be the basis for new experiences of interacting, leading to development and change.
With its contribution to the overall development of the child considering emotional, developmental and physical needs, the process is accessible for all the pupils across the age range. Any pupil may be referred by any professional involved in their care and by parents. The therapist will make an assessment and recommend either ongoing individual work or work in a small group.
Parents receive a music therapy report for the Education Health and Care plan and have feedback on progress including video clips on Tapestry of some group work and parent/teacher consultations at parents evening for individual work.
Whilst children may be assessed initially by the Educational Psychologist working in the child’s home area, the school has access to the Educational Psychologist Service for advice and support.
