The Cadogan Centre, the school’s learning support department, was founded over 50 years ago, and provides the hub for the school’s educational approach and specialist one-to-one support. The school does not employ teaching assistants, but rather, small class sizes and mainstream teaching staff with postgraduate qualifications in the ‘Teaching and Learning of Pupils with SpLD’. Twenty specialist support teachers work together with curriculum teachers to deliver around 550 one-to-one specialist support lessons each week. Teachers monitor pupils’ academic learning as well as providing a substantial level of pastoral support and guidance to both pupils and parents. Assistive technology allows pupils to be independent learners for life. All curriculum and one-to-one lessons are delivered using online platforms that allow pupils and teachers to share course content and collaborate.
The school provides individual tutoring for pupils with specific barriers to learning. These barriers may be hindering children from reaching their full academic and personal potential, which may have a negative impact on their social and emotional well-being and future opportunities. St David’s has broad experience in teaching pupils with:
• challenges associated with literacy
• extra support needed with maths
• difficulties with memory and recall
• slower processing skills
• focus and attention challenges
• language and communication support needs.
The school’s ethos celebrates pupils’ strengths alongside high-quality teaching and learning, where pupils are encouraged to reach for, and exceed, their full potential through individual targeted intervention. The school monitors and adapts the curriculum in order to ensure that teaching and learning match each pupil’s aptitudes and abilities. The pupil passport populated by mainstream teachers and therapists shares important information with mainstream teachers regarding individual pupil’s needs and strengths. Pupils learn resilience, communication skills, focus, self-control, and the use of assistive technology and related strategies in a multisensory way. These are an essential part of the school’s approach to intervention and help pupils to become self-directed, independent and engaged learners who can go out into the world and flourish.
The evidence-based annual tracking of all pupils by dyslexic specialist assessors allows use of up-to-date data to reflect pupil progression and to adjust provision when necessary, and to identify and share best practice in weekly multidisciplinary team meetings. This approach has a positive impact on learners’ outcomes regarding baseline literacy and numeracy skills but also their executive functioning, communication and emotional wellbeing.
In the last five years, the school has employed speech and language therapists, occupational therapists and counsellors as members of Cadogan staff. They work with pupils, teachers and parents to provide an integrated therapeutic approach. In addition, the school’s Social Use of Language Programme, overseen by the speech and language therapist, supports vulnerable pupils who struggle with social interaction and communication. These therapies and programmes use the same individual learning plans (ILPs) for pupil target setting and reviews.