Community Curriculum Statement
Community lessons were introduced in September 2021 in response to the COVID pandemic. Since Feb 2020 there has been very limited opportunities for pupils to access the local area, either with school or with families. By September 2021, most pupils in KS3 had not yet been out into the local area with school. At Annual Reviews, when discussing Community and Independence skills, it was noted by many families that they had not been able to practice these skills and they felt their children had made limited progress. Many pupils in KS5 were not able to make purchases in local shops nor had the road safety skills to visit local shops, even those very close by.
To ensure that the vast majority of pupils were able to access the local area on a weekly basis, Community lessons were established. Each class in KS4 and 5 has one lesson a week, with their form tutor, with the focus being practicing community access skills. Each class selects a challenge for the half term and works towards mastering those skills over the 6-8 weeks. Current challenges include: the green cross code, road safety, accessing the local library, asking for help in the community, using the post office, using a bureau de change, making purchases, price comparison and finding what you need.
Each pupil has a bespoke learning objective for each lesson and evidence of progress is collected in a Unit Record on Earwig. Pupils’ accomplishments are also linked to their EHC Outcomes, most often their Preparation for Adulthood targets.
