Additional activities in and out of school hours complement the curriculum and focus on the developmental needs of each young person. All young people have Individual Learning Plans (IDP) which are informed by the multi-disciplinary team and are regularly reviewed.
To complement our Curriculum even further, we take our students away within the UK, or abroad, once every year. This offers fantastic opportunities for our students to travel and explore, experience and learn about new environments and places, and participate in lots of activities.
Over the last 5 years, our students have experienced skiing in Bulgaria, Center Parcs in France, experienced French culture in Paris, enjoyed caravan parks in Blackpool, and visited theme parks to include Flamingo Land. Students have also enjoyed coastal breaks away in Whitby, Scarborough and Flookburgh.
On return from our trips, we put together photo books for our students and staff, encapsulating all of the memories we made and the places we visited. Click here to find out more.
Very few of our young people have ever participated in school sports and PE but we support them to do so and we have competed in in football, athletics and fell-running fixtures. We have students that have successfully joined local football and rugby teams. We have won Boccia competitions and have regularly taken part in tag-rugby sessions with other schools. The physical and mental health benefits of participation are enormous.
Summer Camp Programmes
We have a Summer Camp Programme and expeditions to the mountains of the Scottish Highlands and Snowdonia alongside our daily forays into the Lake District. Young people can take part in the John Muir Award Scheme, carrying out environmental work in the National Park. We have an established annual ski-trip to Bulgaria, the benefits of which are enormous.
Older students have bespoke independence programmes at our Kendal Green site in a semi-independent residential setting. Here they will develop the skills and resilience to be as independent as possible when they eventually set out on the next part of their journeys.
We also have excellent links with a local further education College where students can be supported to not only access a wider range of opportunities but also become used to working alongside peers in a busier, more mainstream environment. This can be an important milestone towards independence and bolsters self-esteem. Some students will attend on a part or full-time basis depending on their choice of subjects or even as an evening course. For some of our young people to avoid ‘falling off the edge’ at 16 and to continue to be academically challenged, the college link is really important.
Work Experience
Work experience is crucial in developing awareness of the world outside the ‘Whinfell Bubble’ and of building resilience. We have a robust programme which is individually tailored and we work closely with the local careers service to prepare our young people for life beyond school.
One of our young people has competed in Indoor Climbing competitions at a national level (which led to work experience and he is now employed full-time at a climbing wall).