As a child makes the transition from childhood to adulthood, and from secondary education to whatever comes next, it can be an anxious time for both the child and their parents, perhaps even more so with special education needs added to the mix.
It is very common for young people and their parents to have questions and concerns about who they will become as adults, and how they will achieve their goals and aspirations, and indeed if these are even possible.
As a school, our mission is 'to provide innovative, personalised support and exciting learning opportunities that ensure our pupils are happy and successful in life'. This extends far beyond your child's time with us at Fountain Head House School, as we aim to provide our young people with skills, knowledge and coping mechanisms that will stand them in good stead for the next steps in their learning journey and into their careers and adulthood.
We want to empower our young people to become as independent and confident as possible when they move on from their time with us at Fountain Head House School.
As part of the annual EHCP review process, from year 9 onwards we include a focus on how we are preparing each child for what comes next after Fountain Head, and indeed adulthood, depending on their particular situation. There are four main focus areas that we consider when preparing our young people. They are:
Future education, employment or training
These conversations often start by trying to determine whether there is a particular area of interest or aspiration that your child would like to pursue. We will work closely with each child and their parents or carers to ensure that they have a thorough understanding of what options are available to them, what the outcomes of those options are, and what they need to achieve in order to get there.
As well as having the opportunity to visit potential post-16 establishments, employers and careers fairs with our young people, we work closely with CSW (formerly Careers South West), who will visit pupils (and parents) at specific points during their studies, to discuss suitable options and next steps.
Friends, relationships and community
Learning how to build positive relationships both inside and outside of school is an important part of growing up. We support our young people to understand what is appropriate within certain types of relationship, how to spot things that may be inappropriate (and what to do in those instances), how to stay safe online and develop and maintain friendships.
Independent living
This includes understanding money (and how to access any financial support that may be available), cooking, shopping, self-care, making travel plans and learning to make important life choices.
Good health
This includes helping our young people to understand why making healthy food choices and getting regular exercise is so important, but also how to seek medical or professional help when they need it.
If after reading the above you would like to find out more about Fountain Head House School, please visit www.fhhschool.co.uk, email Thereza.DeLucca@fhhschools.com or call 01752 853891.
References:
https://www.kids.org.uk/preparing-for-adulthood-with-sen
https://brighterfuturesforchildren.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/PFA_Publication2019_20_V5_Web.pdf
https://www.ndti.org.uk/resources/preparing-for-adulthood-all-tools-resources
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