Greatwood SEN Programmes

The Facts
Around one in five young people in the UK are not in employment, education or training (NEET). Youth unemployment costs the UK economy £10 million a day in lost productivity, while youth crime costs £1 billion every year.

A wealth of research indicates that lower educational attainment and lack of formal qualifications make it much more difficult to secure full-time employment. 5.4% of 15 year olds in England leave school with no qualifications and nearly 25% have fewer than five GCSEs.

Many children will have special educational needs (SEN) of some kind during their education. Children and young people with special needs are a significant part of the population of vulnerable and disadvantaged children, and it is likely that they will be at risk of marginalisation, exclusion and underachievement throughout their lives.

Most children with special educational needs are categorized as being at risk of ‘not in education, employment or training’ (NEET) later in life, a scenario that we at Greatwood aim to help avoid. Government research has concluded that NEETs are 20 times more likely to commit crime and 22 times more likely to be a teenage mum, costing the taxpayer £100,000 over the course of their lifetime.

Schools and other organisations can help some children overcome the barriers their difficulties present however, most children will require additional help from external providers.

Greatwood’s Aims
Greatwood’s unique educational programmes address the effects special needs can have on a child throughout its life who is vulnerable to NEET.

Horse Power is a valuable starting point in supporting those children with special needs who are having difficulty managing their behaviour.  These children have suffered significant harm, loss or trauma during their childhood, or suffer from medical conditions that affect them often into adulthood.  Our work not only supports the children but also those that work with them in schools and the care system.  Visiting teachers, teaching assistants, carers and parents have the opportunity to see the children in a different environment and learn from their interactions with the animals and other children.

Our ultimate aim is to help children and young people feel positive about themselves and their contribution, however small, to the work of Greatwood. We know from experience that the most effective learning should be active and enjoyable but also meaningful and poignant. Attendees complete our courses with the understanding that positive changes can happen not only in the care of small animals and the rehabilitation of the rescued horses, but also in themselves. 

Greatwood’s Education Programmes

Horse Power

Horse Power is a life skills and emotional literacy programme, developed at Greatwood for children and young people with special educational needs (SEN). The children, aged between 3-19yrs, will learn social skills, communication and improve their life chances through interaction with the small animals and rescued horses.

Those with SEN are at risk of social exclusion and disengaging, and require additional help to develop social skills if they are to have a positive future.  Attendees can have a range of learning difficulties including but not limited to: Autism; Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; Social, emotional and behavioural difficulties; Specific learning difficulties; Down’s syndrome; Global developmental delay; Attachment disorder; to name but a few.

There are very limited activities tailored for children with SEN. Now in its sixth year, this innovative and individually tailored programme is realising incredible results.

This 6 week programme provides the opportunity to explore caring for small animals and horses, learning about trust, kindness and respect while at the same time applying the same considerations to learning how to care for themselves and their own relationships.

As an education centre we link the programmes to the National Curriculum and liase closely with education services to ensure that our work is complementary.

Young people attending Horse Power can now follow one of two Open College Network accredited courses giving them a recognised qualification in animal care. For many students this is the starting point in a career with animals and can lead to further education opportunities to study animal and equine care.  

NOCN Accredited Courses

Secondary pupils gain an Entry Level or Level One qualification called ‘Developing Confidence in Working with Animals.’ The programme gives opportunities to work with a variety of small and larger animals to develop introductory levels of animal husbandry and care. The course is delivered over 10 weeks, in ten half day sessions.

Another OCN programme that the young people can follow is called ‘Developing Skills in Horticulture.’ The programme focuses learning on how to develop a garden, grow plants and vegetables, keep them healthy, and produce sustainable food sources. This is a level one course which is predominantly practical and is delivered in ten half day sessions through the summer term. 

Sensory Garden  - Work is currently underway to design and build a Greatwood Sensory Garden. Assistance is being sought from Wiltshire Blind and various other local community organisations. Planting will provide opportunities to stimulate the senses through use of texture and scent in addition to edible species. It is hoped that the garden will be finished by Summer 2012.

KS4 Engagement Programme

The aim of the programme is to provide Key Stage 4 students practical hands on experience of working in a farm environment. Individuals wishing to progress in the workplace, in education and in training, need to be able to demonstrate flexibility and wide ranging skills. This course offers the opportunity to work towards an accredited qualification in animal and equine care. The course aims to raise student aspirations, self-confidence and motivation, and is geared towards future academic and life success.

Key features:

  • Strong focus on practical skills development and employability
  • Suitable for students needing a high level of support and guidance
  • Activities aimed to motivate and build confidence
  • Qualification offered at Level 1
  • Suitable for learners following an alternative curriculum or at risk of exclusion

Course options:

NOCN Level One Award (Step Up) – 36 week programme  

Equine work based placement in a working equine environment

NOCN Level One Award - Developing Skills for Employability – 36 week programme

Health and safety in a practical equine environment, developing practical skills and techniques, participating in an equine vocational taster.

‘Get Going’ at Greatwood

This innovative programme helps young people develop key workplace skills such as confidence and motivation. We work with 16 to 25 year-olds who have struggled at school, have been in care, are long-term unemployed or have been in trouble with the law. To help those with few or no qualifications to develop key skills, confidence and motivation, enabling young people to move into work, education or training within the horse world. 

This Northern Racing College accredited programme, delivered over 5 days, engages attendees in group activities giving them a through introduction to horse care, welfare, training, and the racing industry as a whole.

Through working with local partners, it provides an opportunity for young people who are unable, unwilling or lack the confidence to take part in a longer personal development programme, or may be unable to access such opportunities for a variety of reasons.

Objectives

The Greatwood educational programmes aim to prepare young people, often marginalised by society, for life in and out of the workplace by helping them to learn life skills, achieve an accredited qualification, and ultimately help them achieve independence in adulthood.

The programmes are accredited by The Open College Network and lead to a formal qualification, which boosts the young person’s confidence in their ability to achieve success.

We are now in the process of creating new courses to enable those who have attended to sustain their development, and either attend further education or enter the world of work. We aspire to be a centre of excellence by providing outstanding programmes in an area where there is a lack of state provision.

Summary

Greatwood offers a variety of unique resources to schools, teachers, parents, carers and local authorities to meet the needs of vulnerable and ‘at risk’ children and young people in the community. These are the very children that do not respond well to conventional educational settings but thrive on the tailored programmes, developed by our specialist teaching staff, to meet every individual need.

The incredible results seen in attendees has generated even greater demand for our programmes. We are now researching new partnerships as potential channels for the delivery of our programmes worldwide.  By extending the reach into the wider arena we will ensure that even more children and young people will benefit.