Page 15 of 27
levels of independence, undertaking household chores, learning to share, and
developing a sense of family and community.
Behaviour Management:
We have a high staff to young person ratio and a positive approach towards
behaviour support. Each young person is treated with dignity and respect. All staff
wear a uniform so that young people understand they are there to help.
The school uses a range of both proactive and reactive strategies to support
young people in learning to self-manage behaviour. All behaviour is seen as a
form of communication and is managed in a positive way by teaching young
people to substitute more appropriate behaviour. We do not use punitive
methods or sanctions.
There is considerable expertise within the Positive Behaviour Support, therapy,
senior management and wider staff teams in supporting challenging behaviour.
Each young person has a Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) Plan which includes
proactive and reactive strategies to support them in learning to self-manage
behaviour and ensures a consistent approach is employed throughout the
Waking Day. It is reviewed regularly by the Positive Behaviour Support team,
Home Manager, Keyworker, Class Teacher, Therapists and other professionals
within Prior's Court School. Strategies are carefully considered by all staff
concerned, often in consultation with parents. We have had considerable success
with our young people in this area.
We have adopted the Team Teach approach using de-escalation and positive
management techniques, further details of which may be obtained from the
Director of Young People's Learning or the Director of Young People's Wellbeing.
A key element in supporting behaviour is the use of the TEACCH system of
structured teaching with structure in the organisation of the day and the layout of
classroom and living spaces. Regular exercise and the use of areas of space within
Prior's Court School campus are also part of the strategies to reduce anxieties and
learn to self-calm.
Further support:
The residential and education departments are supported by an extremely
experienced Senior Leadership team and onsite multi-disciplinary teams. See
section two of this document for further details.
Supporting the young person to make choices and give their views:
Choice-making and expression of views can be difficult for many of the young
people at Prior's Court and therefore self-advocacy is seen as an important skill
that often needs to be taught.
Young people are encouraged to make choices in everyday situations such as
what to wear, in selecting preferred leisure activities and through the 'choice'
option within their schedules.