BASTONHOUSE

SCHOOL

BASTON HOUSE SCHOOLPROSPECTUS

Baston House School Aims:

• To create a sense of community by encouraging all pupils

to become active participants in the school and local

colleges of further education, close partnership with

parents and members of the local community.

• To develop social understanding by carefully designed

programmes fully informed by the in-house clinical team.

We also recognise we have a duty to promote awareness

and understanding of ASC in the community.

• To improve well-being by supporting our pupils to

understand their own feelings and emotions and provide

them with a range of strategies to cope with daily

activities.

• To enhance academic achievement by delivering a broad

curriculum which is meaningful and fun with academic

and vocational pathways.

• To develop independence by promoting choice and

independence in everything that we do in preparing our

young people to contribute to their community.

Dedicated StaffEssential to any child’s learning and well-being is the teacher and

we have highly experienced, skilled, dedicated and committed

teaching teams and support staff. These teams work together to

provide flexibility in meeting the needs of all pupils. Our teams

work together to provide a safe and engaging environment within

which the needs of the pupils are met.

Parent PartnershipWe know that our partnership with parents is a key factor to the

success of the children with whom we support. So, we promote,

encourage and create opportunities for parental involvement in

every step of our pupils’ education and well-being. Our termly

celebration days are testament to our open door approach to

encourage partnerships with parents.

Thank YouFinally, I hope that you enjoy reading this prospectus and I

invite you to visit and look around our fantastic school. I am

confident that you will be impressed by the quality of education,

understanding and support we can offer to children and young

people. To make an appointment to visit, or to simply ask a

question, please call the school office on 020 8462 1010.

WelcomeA message from Mr. Greg Sorrell, Headteacher

BASTONHOUSE

SCHOOL

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Baston House School is an independent day specialist provider of education in Bromley, Kent for children and young people aged from

5 to 19 years who have been diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASC).

Baston House School ensures that our school environment supports learning and promotes the well-being of pupils and staff through a

strong sense of community cohesion.

Creating a sense of community, developing social understanding, improving well-being, enhancing academic achievement and

developing independence are all at the root of our school community. We work hard to provide a safe school where pupils are included

in every aspect of school life.

BASTON HOUSE SCHOOL PROSPECTUS

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We strive to achieve the best possible outcomes through a

culture of high expectations for all and reflective practice. Baston

House School values the fact that our students deserve the same

positive outcomes that matters to all students.

Fundamental to the Baston House School approach is our

commitment to personalise the curriculum to the unique qualities

and needs of each student. Our curriculum has the flexibility to

address the individual and very specific needs of each student,

which will promote the well-being and development of the whole

individual.

Primary EducationBaston House School offers a specialist education that includes

the National Curriculum to pupils aged from 5-11 years.

Key Stage 1-2 subjects include:

Secondary Education At Baston House School we are committed to providing all of our

students with a broad, balanced and personalised education.

Once in Year 9, the emphasis is upon providing students with

varied studies across a wide range of subjects and qualifications.

Pupils are given every opportunity to access these lessons

through the team work and efforts of their teaching teams. In

preparation for the future, pupils also have a transition plan

drafted from Year 9 onwards and attend lessons on preparing for

work and independent living.

Pupils have the opportunity to choose some of their courses for

Year 10 and 11, in order to pursue particular interests or strengths.

At this ‘Options’ stage, students choose from the subjects on

offer which include:

Visual LearningOur curriculum delivery is supported by a range of prominent

visual strategies, including highly structured work-systems;

predictable changes, phase timings and engaging and appealing

learning environments.

Key SkillsTo improve learning and performance in education, six skills areas

are embedded in the subjects of the National Curriculum. These

are described as key skills.

Our students need to be taught the skills that are needed for

learning. Thinking skills complement the six key skills and are

embedded in the National Curriculum. The National Curriculum

stresses that when pupils use thinking skills they focus on

“knowing how” to learn as well as “knowing what” to learn. For

pupils with learning difficulties, the development of thinking skills

also involves sensory awareness and perception as well as early

cognitive skills.

Uniform

Primary school uniform is a yellow badged polo shirt, with a royal

blue badged sweatshirt. Secondary school uniform is a white

badged polo shirt, with a navy badged sweatshirt. Trousers or

skirt are grey or black.

School lunch

All pupils bring in a packed lunch and we encourage parents to

provide healthy food, snacks and drinks.

Communication

Close liaison with parents is of paramount importance to us in

providing continuity and consistency of approach for our pupils.

We have a parent liaison officer on site who, alongside the class

team, keeps communication to a high standard.

We frequently hold coffee mornings for parents, which are

chaired by our headteacher.

We also host celebration evenings, end of term assemblies, as

well as parents evenings periodically and encourage all parents to

attend.

Tools we use to communicate with all stakeholders effectively

and in a timely fashion include; school comms, Class Dojo, emails

and telephone calls.

The School Day

Curriculum

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• 8.45 - 9.15 Registration/Tutorial

• 9.15 - 10.00 Lesson 1

• 10.00 - 10.45 Lesson 2

• 10.45 - 11.05 Break

• 11.05 - 11.50 Lesson 3

• 11.50 - 12.35 Lesson 4

• 12.35 - 13.20 Lunch

• 13.20 - 13.25 Registration

• 13.25 - 14.10 Lesson 5

• 14.10 - 14.55 Lesson 6

• 14.55 - 15.05 Tutor Time

BASTON HOUSE SCHOOL PROSPECTUS

• English

• Maths

• Science

• Design and Technology

• Information and

Communication

Technology (ICT)

• History

• Geography

• Performing and Expressive

Arts

• Music

• Physical Education

• English

• Maths

• Science

• Design and Technology

• Information and

Communication

Technology (ICT)

• History

• Geography

• Modern Foreign

Languages

• Performing and Expressive

Arts

• Music

• Citizenship

• Physical Education

• Religious Studies

Pupils join the school often after having long periods of time out of formal education. Over their time at the school, they become more confident, articulate and engaged children and young people.

Ofsted

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Positive ReinforcementPositive reinforcement and celebration of achievement is

embedded in our school culture and includes individually

meaningful and high value reward systems that motivate

our pupils to participate in activities, helping them to take

responsibility for their own learning.

Primary and Secondary TransitionWe acknowledge that the transition from primary to secondary

may be a challenge to most pupils. We make the progression

from primary to secondary as structured and predictable as

possible. The school has embedded opportunities for primary and

secondary phase interaction such as the integrated lunchtimes

and termly performing arts productions. This interaction reduces

the anxieties of pupils as they progress to secondary and

enables children to move into an environment where they will be

interacting with familiar faces and often, good friends.

The last term of Year 6 involves planned interactions between

Year 6 and Secondary classes. Primary teachers introduce

short visits to the Secondary building. Secondary teachers start

teaching primary children in their primary classes and gradually

move them into specialist rooms. A gradual timetable is phased

in so that by the end of the academic year, Year 6 has two full

weeks of their predicted Year 7 timetable. This approach has

proven hugely successful at Baston House School.

Teaching TeamsSmall class groups with a high staff to pupil ratio, at least a Teacher and a Teaching Assistant per class who work closely with the Senior Management.

ActivitiesBaston House School is also working towards a range of special activities, to include:

• Independence and Life Skills programmes

• Independent Travel training

• Vocational learning

• Sex, relationship and drug related education

• Mainstream participation

• Citizenship (including School Council)

• Healthy eating

• Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme

• Horticulture

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Transition and IndependenceCourses at Key Stage 4 provide pathways to nationally recognised

accreditation including GCSEs. We continually revise our provision

of access to a range of practical and vocational curriculum areas

depending on students areas of interest and the economic

demand for the skills gained from these areas. In all cases,

students are supported in reaching their full potential and in

acquiring skills that will enable them to live as independently as

possible.

We ensure that basic independence skills are taught: personal

hygiene, accessing healthcare, domestic management, engaging

with emergency services, safe travel, healthy eating, active

lifestyles and financial planning.

In addition to this we include well-being promotion by teaching

anxiety reduction and stress relief strategies to cope with sudden

change and unpredictability. The importance of schedules and

structures is reinforced. Social development input is focused on

supporting students in developing and maintaining safe social

groups outside of school. Lastly, we do offer in-house sex and

relationship education, work experience in an area of learner

interest and integration days at a local school or college.

Being a student with autism means that your greatest need is

the ability to interact socially. Safe and meaningful relationships

and communicating and expressing one’s emotions in a socially

acceptable way is a huge part of the work delivered here at

Baston House School.

BASTON HOUSE SCHOOL PROSPECTUS

BASTON HOUSE SCHOOL PROSPECTUS

Multi-Disciplinary ApproachWe have a multidisciplinary team consisting of Clinical Psychology,

Occupational Therapy and Speech and Language Therapy. We

work from a multi-disciplinary team approach. This means a

combination of different skills and knowledge to provide a holistic

understanding of the difficulties students may present. In this way

we are able to design interventions to meet the unique needs of

each student from a variety of perspectives.

Therapy is delivered individually with students to address specific

needs that are highlighted by teachers and parents and specified

in their EHCPs. Group sessions are also delivered by the team as

well as supporting teachers to use the strategies developed within

their daily teaching.

Onsite Therapy InputOur Therapy team comprising Specialist Speech and Language

Therapists, Specialist Occupational Therapists and Clinical

Psychologists, embeds effective and contemporary practice

into the teaching and well-being practices at our school. This

shapes the personalised and effective approach that we have in

developing a curriculum that offers students the best learning

experience possible.

Speech and Language TherapyBaston House School aim to provide a ‘total communication’

environment where all modes of communication are equally

valued and students are given opportunities to make choices,

initiate and maintain conversation, make and maintain friendships

and express their own ideas and opinions. The Speech and

Language Therapy Department provides a specialised student

centred speech and language therapy service to meet the

individual needs of all the children at Baston House School which

is delivered as an integral part of their education.

The Speech and Language service at Baston House School is

a highly collaborative integrated model which is focused on

enabling pupils to access the class based curriculum and to

understand and communicate effectively in all school settings. All

classes at Baston have a Speech and Language Therapist (SLT)

attached to a class group of between 4-10 children and work

intensively and collaboratively with the other members of the

staff team, including other members of the clinical team. The SLT

team will advise on curriculum delivery and support teaching staff

with differentiation of work to support receptive and expressive

language ability.

Therapy approaches and delivery are determined by the pupil’s

Speech and Language Therapist. This collaborative approach to

working ensures that pupils benefit from a high level of input

through SLT advised groups, integrated classroom strategies,

a whole school approach to maximising communication

opportunities and therapist led class sessions.

Baston House School is an environment where communication

strategies are embedded throughout the school day and each

student’s communication needs are recognised and strategies

then practised in each lesson and across different environments.

This approach means that each student has the opportunity to

develop and practise skills in a naturalistic environment leading to

generalisation of skills.

Occupational TherapyOur in-house Occupational Therapy service aims to enable all

children to “participate in the activities of everyday life”.

We ensure that the requirements of all our children’ Statements

of Special Educational Needs or Education, Health and Care Plans

(EHCP) are met and the Occupational Therapy offered at Baston

House School exceeds this for the vast majority.

Every member of the school community plays a key part in the

delivery of this service. This reflects our belief that engagement

in meaningful activities throughout the day is what allows our

children to develop their independence, sense of identity and

well-being. We work as part of the whole team around each

child, to optimise the Person-Environment-Occupation fit.

We are part of the wider therapy team, working closely with

Speech and Language Therapy, Drama Therapy, Psychology and

Counselling.

All teachers at Baston House School ensure our pupils acquire

knowledge, skills and understanding as they progress through

a curriculum designed to meet their special educational needs.

This practice is multi-sensory, language-centred and connective.

Learning is the process through which the students can develop

their knowledge, skills and understanding to the point where they

have retained and generalised what has been taught. Teaching

and learning is carried out in a relevant and meaningful context

to students on the autism spectrum to ensure effective learning

and appropriate accreditation. All staff will work in such a way

that the learning environment is calm and consistent, with

clear expectation, both as a group and as individuals. This will

maximise information processing throughout each day allowing

the students to realise their full potential. The curriculum

design across all age ranges connects each student with the

acquisition of knowledge, skill and understanding related to

minimising the effects of a diagnosis of autism and its associated

learning difficulties. This design makes meaningful connections

for students, which maximises their potential for success and

independence

Therapies Teaching and Learning

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The effective use of occupational therapy and speech and language therapy helps pupils’ to develop other skills, such as their ability to communicate, interact with other people and to work independently.Ofsted

Objectives

• Listen attentively

• Develop an enquiring mind with the confidence to explore through trial and error

• Learn to communicate effectively in verbal and written form

• Learn to acquire information from various sources and to record findings in various ways including the use of digital technology

• Understand mathematical ideas and apply numerical skills

• Understand basic scientific ideas and concepts

• Gain a basic understanding of historical and geographical skills and knowledge

• Acquire control of tools, computers and digital technology

• Appreciate the joys and benefits of physical education and experience a range of sporting activities

• Use music, drama and art/craft forms as a means of creative expression

• Learn how to spend their leisure time imaginatively, independently and cooperatively in formal and non-structured environments

• Learn self-help skills and be aware of the rewards and dangers of society in preparation for adult life

Each pupil will be encouraged to:

Admissions

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BASTON HOUSE SCHOOL PROSPECTUS

What Parents Say

“My son has had a disrupted schooling in the past, since

starting at Baston House in September, we have seen a

remarkable difference in him, he is happy to attend school

for the first time in his life, the staff are amazing and I

cannot praise his TA enough - fantastic communication, way

above the call of her duties.”

“I would just like to say that this school is a very welcoming

school with a friendly environment for everyone. Parents

are often welcomed into the school for events that give

opportunities to talk to the teachers.”

“His reading, writing and speech have all improved hugely

since he has attended Baston House and I am relieved that

we have finally found a school which understands his needs

and is able to unlock his potential.”

“My son (aged 7) has been attending Baston House for a

year now, following two previous failed school placements.

He has grown in confidence over this period and looks

forward to coming to school. He has made considerable

progress in following an adult led agenda and interacting

with his peers. The school have utilised his interests (eg IT)

and used them as a basis for further learning.”

“The Cooking is excellent and you can see the results of

their work.”

“The performances are beautiful and the children love

them.”

“After a disastrous first year at a mainstream secondary

school, my son has found Baston House to be a safe haven.

He is being helped to re-build his confidence and self-

esteem and is starting to make good progress academically.

The school staff are very supportive and concentrate on

all of his needs - educational, emotional and social. His

attendance record at mainstream school was very poor, but

at Baston House he happily goes to school every morning,

which in itself speaks volumes about the way he feels about

school. Most importantly, he at last feels safe at school and

this gives him space to learn and grow.”

“My son has made academic progress in such a short time

since he joined Baston House.“

“There’s much that’s right at Baston House, in particular the

staff team. What sets the school apart from previous schools

is the care shown by every person working there and the

genuine desire to want to make a change and a difference.

It’s a warm, friendly, welcoming environment - it’s a bit of a

cliché but it does feel like a family and I’ve never been left in

any doubt that everyone wants to do the right thing by my

son.”

“I love the home school diary, I know what he is learning

and can communicate with staff easily and conveniently. My

son is enjoying school for the first time in his life!”

ReferralsBaston House School accepts referrals from parents and local authorities. We encourage parents to engage in a dialogue with their local authority and make a joint application for a place at the school.

Typically, we receive referrals from local authorities once an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) has been agreed. Upon receiving the relevant reports, the headteacher and relevant staff will determine when an initial visit can be arranged to the school for the prospective pupil and parents/carers.

Following this initial visit the assessment team may decide that the provision at Baston House School cannot meet the needs of the child. If the assessment team feel that needs may be met, an additional visit will be offered. The nature and duration of this visit will be tailored to the needs of each child. We would aim to provide prospective pupils with a taste of life at Baston House School.

At the end of this process, if a pupil is accepted an offer letter will then be sent to the relevant parties with possible starting dates and fees. Within the first 12 weeks of the child starting at the school, we will arrange for a post admission review to be held. At this meeting, the placement will be discussed and any amendments to the provision agreed.

BehaviourBaston House School focuses strongly on the positive aspects of a learner’s school life but recognise that at times they may present with behaviours which challenge.

The school’s Behaviour Policy and Anti-Bullying Policy outlines in more detail how we respond to particular challenges. Copies are available on the website or from the school upon request.

ComplaintsAll of our staff recognise the significance of working in partnership with parents/carers and we value the positive relationships we have. However, we recognise that on rare occasions a parent/carer may feel unhappy with an aspect of their child’s education. Though most problems and difficulties are usually resolved informally, a school complaints policy and procedure for registering a complaint is in place for more formal circumstances.

Copies of this policy are available on the website or from the school upon request.

Pupils feel safe and well supported. They become more confident and independent during their time at the school. They behave well.Ofsted

Contact Us

Baston House School

Baston Road

Hayes

Bromley

Kent

BR2 7AB

Tel: 020 8462 1010

Email: info@bastonhouseschool.org.uk

Web: www.bastonhouseschool.org.uk

For a comprehensive list of school policies please visit the school website.

BARNET WOOD ROAD

Baston House School

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BASTONHOUSE

SCHOOL