Co- op Academy Southfield is a 11-19 special school serving inner city Bradford. We provide places for 360 students at our site in BD5. The school is based in an area rich in cultural diversity, and the community faces the benefits and challenges ranging from different experiences, cultures, religions and customs.

We support students with a wide range of SEND, including those with autistic spectrum conditions, cognition and learning difficulties and physical or sensory disabilities. The school has enhanced facilities and resources to support its students and benefits from a subject specific curriculum delivered by expert teaching staff.

At Co-op Academy Southfield, our curriculum choices are always strongly influenced by our aim to equip students to become as independent as possible, to become responsible citizens capable of making positive contributions to all areas of their lives. We place a focus on communication, to support our learners to develop strategies so that they have a voice.

As well as the emphasis on developing pupils independence and communication skills safeguarding is a strong feature of all areas of our curriculum. We focus on teaching students how to manage different situations including those online.

Based on the Co-op value ‘Do what matters most’, much of our curriculum content is selected specifically to prepare students for the next stage of education; develop their life skills and their independence. The educational experiences they have at our academy will enable our pupils to live more independently as adults.

At Co-op Academy Southfield, we do not follow one approach to teaching and learning. We upskill our teachers to have a toolkit approach, which means that they must know and understand different pedagogical techniques, and be able to consistently and effectively apply them to promote personalised learning. Methods include: Intensive Interaction, Attention Autism techniques, TACPAC, therapeutic and occupational interventions, and augmentative and alternative communication. We build in frequent opportunities for pupils to practise and consolidate key knowledge and create appropriate accreditation opportunities that are bespoke and aspirational and provide currency for the next stage of learning.

We inspire in students a love of learning and the communities they access. We build our students’ cultural capital through a wide range of coherently planned, first-hand experiences, including educational visits., a broad CEIAG offer (work experience, enterprise and vocational learning), and opportunities for leadership development (student council, Co-op Young Leaders and Duke of Edinburgh).

Every interaction we have with our students is an opportunity to build independence and prepare them for life beyond Southfield; to that end, transitions, break and lunch time, SMSC, enrichment clubs and intimate care are always valuable learning opportunities.

Statement of intent

At Co-op Academy Southfield we value our students and their uniqueness. We will never let anything get in the way of our high aspirations for them. To make sure that they achieve all that they are capable of, we will ensure that our curriculum is literacy rich and is broad and balanced so that the students have exposure to a curriculum that engages and challenges them regardless of their background.

Our curriculum will be sequenced so that the students are taught firm foundations and that subsequent learning builds upon what the students already know and can do. We aim to equip students to become as independent as possible, to become responsible citizens capable of making positive contributions in adulthood. Our curriculum is designed to foster personal development, ensuring that students acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to thrive in modern Britain.

We will make sure that they are supported in a range of situations external to the school environment too so that we are contributing to their personal development as well as their academic development.

The Co-op Values and Ways of Being are the golden thread running through our endeavours and our approaches.

1. Legal framework

This policy has due regard to statutory legislation including, but not limited to, the following:
Equality Act 2010
Equality Act 2010 (Disability) Regulations 2010
This policy also has due regard to statutory and non-statutory guidance including, but not limited to, the following:
DfE (2015) ‘Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years’

Due regard must be had to the current Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy at all times whilst undertaking the tasks within and functions of this policy.

2. Southfield Staff

Ensure high quality teaching and learning for all students
Are fully prepared for the day; planning meaningful, motivational and challenging interactions and lessons.
Deliver the key skills and knowledge outlined in the curriculum, in an age and developmentally appropriate way to meet the needs of students within their class.
Plan and prepare interactions and lessons that are inclusive giving equal opportunities for all our students.
Ensure that our students are supported to become the very best version of themselves
Ensure all students have access to communicate
Ensure all students are prepared for their next stage of learning
Promote the Co-op Values, Ways of Being and British Values
Share examples of best practice and collaborate with others
Maintain planning and assessment documents in line with the school’s robust assessment, recording and reporting systems to ensure students make good progress
Utilise resources effectively
Embed a 'total communication' approach to ensure that all pupils can access the lessons – this includes the use of Augmented and Alternative Communication (AAC) including strategies such as signing, symbols and objects of reference and touch cues where needed.
Ensure that all students know and understand their voice matters

3. Curriculum Design

3.1 Our curriculum builds on that from our main primary feeder school and takes into account the requirements of the national curriculum. A Subject specific curriculum ensures our offer is aspirational and broad, providing variety and consolidation of knowledge and skills. Students are taught the things that are important to them, making links to the local context and preparing students for adulthood.

3.2 Each key stage has a “big question”, and a yearly theme sits under this:

Key Stage 3 - What can I share about myself?

Y7 All About Me
Y8 My Body Can
Y9 Choices and Voices

Key Stage 4 - What can I do to look after myself?

Y10 Risky Business
Y11 Bradford and Beyond

Key Stage 5 - What can I do to be an active citizen?

Y12 Ambitions and Aspirations
Y13 Entering Adulthood
Y14 Life After Southfield

The theme offers a hook and a purpose for learning throughout the year. Curriculum planning ensures the theme is woven through the subjects to allow opportunities to revisit learning and to connect what they already know with new knowledge. Teaching predominantly in year groups ensures the sequence of learning and retrieval opportunities.

3.3 As students progress through the key stages the curriculum offers subjects that reflect the need to develop more targeted skills and knowledge in preparation for future pathways.

3.4 Curriculum content has been chosen to reflect the diversity of modern Britain. By doing so, we aim to provide a rich learning environment that celebrates diversity and empowers all students to succeed. The curriculum incorporates a wide range of differences and perspectives including diverse gender identities, races, disabilities, religions, ages and cultures. Artists, musicians, scientists, songs, SMSC events, books and music are diverse. We are committed to reviewing and adapting our curriculum to ensure it remains inclusive and representative of the diverse world we live in.

3.5 Teachers have the autonomy to select resources based on the individual needs of students. Co-op Academy Southfield subscribes to a number of programmes to ensure consistency in the quality of teaching and learning in subject areas. These are: Read, Write, Ink Phonics programme, White Rose Maths, PSHE Association, Access Art, P.E Planning.

3.6 Learning in the community is a feature of the curriculum and increases as students progress through the key stages. Educational visits provide students with real-world experiences that can make abstract concepts more tangible and easier to understand, connections are made between their classroom learning and the real-world to reinforce understanding. Educational visits offer opportunities for students to interact with peers and adults in different settings, helping to develop communication and social skills.

3.7 CEIAG aims to help students, through careers and work-related activities and employer interventions, to be able to: understand themselves and develop their capabilities in relation to future learning and employment opportunities. Our CEIAG policy is available upon request.

3.8 A copy of the school’s curriculum is available upon request.

4. Lesson planning

4.1 Learning in its widest sense, is the school’s primary purpose and it is a shared commitment. We know that co-productive practice provides optimum benefit to students.

4.2 Learning environments, classroom management and organisation:

At Co-op Academy Southfield we operate a range of teaching and learning styles that we call our “Fundamentals of the Quality of Teaching and Learning” and this is supported by how our classrooms and teaching spaces are organised to facilitate learning and develop independence.
Some of the ways in which lessons are delivered are by:

Whole class sessions
Small group work
1:1 teaching
Collaborative learning
Independent learning
Interventions in specific focused curriculum areas
Continuous, purposeful provision
Community based learning

Each classroom is equipped with a range of resources that enable effective teaching and learning. All classrooms have an interactive whiteboard and teachers make use of it when appropriate. Students are taught to use appropriate resources correctly, safely, carefully and respectfully. Resources are chosen to reflect diversity in our society and ensure pupils have equality of access.
Displays are used to support, reinforce and celebrate learning. Displays should aid recall, stimulate thinking, celebrate achievement and motivate children towards future learning.
Teachers are responsible for ensuring that classrooms are an exciting, stimulating and welcoming places to be by;

Arranging space to create a safe and flexible learning environment
Making sure equipment is labelled and accessible to promote independent learning
Creating a space for each student; adding to a sense of belonging
Teaching, and expecting, students to respect and care for their environment
Ensuring that environments are inviting and all areas are safe and clutter free

5. Support for learning

5.1 In order to support students, teachers and support staff must

Ensure visual timetables and daily schedules are in use at all times and individual timetables reflect the needs of each student
Use augmented and alternative communication, including objectives of reference, touch cues, photos, symbols, and signing.
Make it clear to all those working with students the expectations for the lesson and pupil’s learning by sharing individual targets, learning objectives and assessment.
Ensure key vocabulary associated with specific curriculum areas is taught appropriately
Ensure effective and flexible deployment of staff to support the learning of individual students
Undertake professional development throughout the year
Accept support from colleagues
Ensure that dysregulation is managed positively using agreed and consistent approaches, and recorded in a timely manner.
Ensure pupil voice is part of the lesson and contributes to lesson design and assessment.
Embrace active learning and learning outside of the classroom, carefully planning opportunities to reinforce knowledge and skills and providing contextual learning.

5.2 All staff are expected to present themselves as a positive role model for our students and show the Co-op values at all times.

5.3 Long and medium term planning is reviewed collaboratively. Teachers are expected to contribute to curriculum development on a termly basis.

5.4 Each subject plan has a broad learning outcome. All students in the year group work towards the subject’s learning outcome but will be at different stages in their acquisition of knowledge and skills. The knowledge and skills that students learn and remember are chunked into smaller steps and teachers use these to plan lesson objectives bespoke to their cohort of students.

5.5 Adults must communicate lesson objectives with students, revisiting knowledge and skills to ensure that retention has taken place and progress is made.

5.6 Planning must be accessible to other adults working in the classroom.

5.7 Termly planning overviews are shared with families at the start of the year, to ensure links between home and school. Families are also directed to the website to find more detailed information about our curriculum.

5.8 All classes display the students’ current targets to ensure that everyone is able to support the students in achieving these targets.

6. Assessment, monitoring and reporting

6.1 We have an assessment week each term, where staff upload assessment data on Maths, English, and PSD to Arbor (our MIS) and the RWI portal (phonics). Staff are given CPD time to moderate in year groups and judgements are then quality assured by SLT.

6.2 Assessment marks are added to Arbor for English, Maths and PSD, linking to the skills progression steps. Trends are analysed and plans put in place to strengthen the curriculum. Individual student gaps are visible to the teacher.

6.3 Phonics assessments in Read Write Inc synthetic phonics programme are added termly at the half term marker to offset workload. Staff are trained on how to deliver assessments and data is collected to identify patterns in student progress which informs our intervention strategy.

6.4 Capturing evidence

Evidence is captured against both EHCP and curriculum outcomes in order to validate teacher judgements. Staff are encouraged to utilise a tool box of evidencing strategies including Evidence for learning, marked work books, observation sheets and portfolio work.

6.5 Parents’ Evening/school reports

Parents evenings are held twice a year, in the Autumn and Summer term. Parents are encouraged to come into school where they are given reports on progress against EHCP outcomes and curriculum subjects.

7. Monitoring and evaluating the quality of T&L

7.1 The role of Quality Assurance (QA) is to ensure all students receive the highest possible quality of education throughout their time at Co-op Academy Southfield.

7.2 All quality assurance activities aim to answer the following questions:

What are we doing well that we can celebrate and share?
What do we need to do better?
How can we do it better?
What evidence is there of our students making progress?

7.3 QA helps to support teachers and build expertise and capacity in the school to deliver positive outcomes for all. Through sharing, understanding and applying standards and expectations our quality assurance will help to raise standards and levels of consistency across staff.

7.4 Rigorous and robust quality assurance gives confidence in teachers' judgments and provides assurance to parents and other stakeholders that all learners receive appropriate recognition for their achievements.

7.5 To assure high quality outcomes for our students, through teaching & learning there are a range of criteria to ensure that high standards are maintained, and outcomes improved for our students. The process involves monitoring of subject areas, using self-evaluation, SLT evaluation and planning for improvement.

7.6 It is important that our analysis and judgement of the quality of teaching is robust, rigorous, fair and useful; this is why it is important to reach judgements based upon evidence from multiple sources of information.

7.7 We use a variety of different activities to carry out QA; and include Observations, Progress Meetings, Subject Reviews and analysis of Assessment Data. A more detailed description of QA used is available upon request.

8. Continuous Professional Development

8.1 We have staff at all stages of their careers, with a wider range of experience and expertise. We know that all staff have different areas of strength in their practice, and areas they are working on to develop.

8.2 Performance expectations for all staff are aligned with National Standards in their given area. We would expect new teachers to be working ‘at standard’, those in the early part of their career and on MPS to be ‘secure’, and those teachers on UPR or holding TLRs to be ‘expert’ in most standards. Quality Assurance against these standards, are triangulated with PPDR and CPD.

8.3 We will ensure that staff are supported to develop their knowledge and skills to provide improved teaching and learning for our students. We aim to identify and share good practice in teaching and learning across all curriculum areas. Staff are encouraged to identify their own training needs as well as the senior leadership team updating staff training as required. Staff are encouraged to stay up-to-date with new research concerning teaching.

9. EHCP Assessment Outcomes

9.1 Progress against personal EHCP Outcomes is assessed on a continuous basis to inform planning and is moderated each term. Long and medium term outcomes are reviewed during the annual review and new outcomes may be set if these have been met, or at the end of a Key Stage.

9.2 The EHCP describes the unique learning outcomes that are child centred, in consultation with all stakeholders.

9.3 All students have 4 areas of need with at least 1 outcome for each area and increase to 8 areas of need from Year 9.

9.4 Our expectation is that all staff value the individual uniqueness of students and that they take every opportunity to develop effective relationships. This in turn enables them to know the students well and to assess their learning appropriately. This is supported by the use of their pupil passport ‘This is me’ and collaborative working with all stakeholders.

10. Parents/Carers

10.1 We know that it is the team around the students that make them successful and working with parents is something that is incredibly important to us.

10.2 We value our pupils’ parents/carers and want to develop effective relationships which mean that they will feel able to be open and honest with us. If there are any concerns, then we would want to create environments where parents/carers would feel able to let us know about this so that we can help.

10.3 We hold regular coffee mornings throughout the year for parents to meet staff, find out more about the school and share their views.

10.4 Families have the opportunity to attend a yearly parents’ evenings and encourage further contact throughout the year whenever this is needed. The primary method of communication and rewards is Class Dojo.

10.5 Every student has an annual review and we encourage all parents/carers/professionals to attend.

10.6 Although we cannot meet with parents/carers without prior arrangement, if a parent/carer cannot make themselves available for any of the above but would still like to visit school, we will always do our best to accommodate this.

11. Pupil Welfare and Behaviours for Learning

11.1 The school has an ethos of positive behaviour management. Staff are encouraged to recognise that all behaviour is a form of communication. Some students who require extra help with their behaviour benefit from behaviour support plans and these plans are shared with all staff to ensure a consistent approach.

11.2 Attendance is really important. Without high attendance, our students cannot benefit from our curriculum and we therefore expect all students to be in attendance unless their health needs are such that this is not possible.

11.3 All students need certain strategies in place to support behaviour for learning and ensure they are well regulated to enhance their learning. It is important all students have communication strategies in place. To help them communicate what is wrong or what they need. All students need to have a regularly reviewed “This is Me” (individualised profile).

Teaching and Learning Policy