Therapies and Support at Carwarden
Therapy & Support
At Carwarden House we have a multidisciplinary team of therapy professionals who support the students and staff within school. This team includes physiotherapists, occupational therapist and speech and language therapists. Therapists provide functional assessments, support, advice for teachers and staff training. They deliver direct therapy to those students who have interventions outlined in their Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and help the school set and evaluate key skills such as:
- Communication Skills
- Independence Skills
- Motor Skills
- Social Skills
- Cognitive Skills
- Attention and Listening Skills
Speech, Language and Communication support, as well as Occupational Therapy support, is embedded into our curriculum as well as throughout the learning day. For many, this level of input is the right level for their particular age and ability. Helping develop their speech, language and communication and their independence as part of our Universal Offer.
A multidisciplinary approach ensures students are equipped to develop essential life skills, make and maintain friendships, develop social understanding and the functional independence necessary for their full and independent lives beyond the school gates.
Therapies include:
Speech and Language Therapy (SaLT)
A team of speech and language therapists and assistants provide input, support, advice and training. It aims to assist pupils to use their existing communication skills effectively and also supports pupils to develop and learn new functional communication skills. The SaLT team work with pupils whose EHCP specifies input and advice for speech, language and communication difficulties. Interventions may be delivered in an individual, paired or small group basis. Being onsite means they are available to problem solve and pick up on changing needs in a timely manner. Where needed, they provide general and child specific training and modelling of strategies for school staff as part of their continuous professional development. Input is matched to each student’s identified needs.
This therapy is delivered under the guidance of Surrey Speech and Language Services and Symbol:
Hearing Impairment
Audiologists regularly visit the school to assess the needs of our students. They also give advice and training to staff who work with hearing impaired students.
This service is delivered under the guidance of Surrey Sensory Services:
Visual Impairment
Visually impaired students are seen on a regular basis and assessments are made about their needs in classroom settings. Advice about teaching and learning resources is given to staff, particularly issues relating to the size of written material and also the use of contrasting colours.
This service is delivered under the guidance of Surrey Sensory Services:
Physiotherapy
The Physiotherapy Team work with a small number of students who need physiotherapy on a regular basis.
This therapy is delivered under the provision of Children and Family Health Surrey
Children and Family Health Surrey
Occupational Therapy
The Occupational Therapy Team focus on the development of life skills such as eating; washing; being able to dress properly and also fine motor skills. Occupational Therapy is concerned with enabling children to participate more successfully in daily life. The focus is to improve skills for self-care, leisure and educational tasks. This may include assessment and provision of equipment to aid function and postural management, therapy sessions and/or programmes for implementation at school or home. Assessment and intervention will focus on difficulties and the underlying skills that impact on function e.g. motor, sensory, perception and cognition.
The Occupational Therapist works as part of the school team and in close liaison and collaboration with school, multidisciplinary team and home. Intervention may be direct (assessment and therapy) and/or indirect (provision of programmes, setting of goals).
This therapy is delivered under the provision of Children and Family Health Surrey
Children and Family Health Surrey
ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistants)
ELSAs are trained to plan and deliver programmes of support, including Lego Therapy, for pupils who are experiencing temporary or longer term additional emotional needs. ELSA and Lego Therapy work are delivered on an individual basis, or sometimes small group work when appropriate, especially in the areas of social and friendship skills.
The ELSA develops support sessions to facilitate the pupil in developing new skills and coping strategies that allow them to manage social and emotional demands more effectively.
Each session has its own objective that builds towards the longer term aims.
Counselling
Our BACP Registered Counsellor offers 1-2-1 counselling sessions for children and young people who are referred by staff, parents, or the children themselves, working on a range of issues to improve wellbeing, and work with a wider wellbeing team to ensure the most appropriate support is being given according to the students’ needs.
She also runs a lunchtime club called Chill and Chat – a relaxed environment for students to come and chat with each other as well as the Counsellor.