Westhaven School – Curriculum
Westhaven School – Curriculum
The Westhaven curriculum is carefully designed to address the needs of every learner, it is not just a series of stand-alone lessons or subjects but sequenced with the learner in mind. We believe that we have created a curriculum that takes our learners on a journey that puts well-being, social development, academic achievement, and independence at its heart and prepares them for the next key stage and also life beyond Westhaven.
The golden thread that permeates our curriculum and our conduct through every school day, and through the curriculum strands, are the core values that shape our learners to be:
safely independent
confident communicators
respectful citizens
resilient learners
inquisitive thinkers
The strands are fluid and learners are able to move between the pathways at any stage of their school journey. There is continuous teacher assessment and yearly class placement reviews. All learners are able to access areas of the curriculum at their own pace.
Curriculum Strands
The learning strands within the school are split to enable all learners to succeed and each has a slightly different curriculum. These are:
Develop and Empower: Our 6th Form provision for learners who are not quite ready for larger post 16 settings.
Encounter and Explore : a strand for learners who have more severe needs and are working towards EHCP outcomes. The learning in this strand aims to be sensory based, hands on and individualised exploratory experiences.
Connect and Grow : a strand for learners who can access the national curriculum at their academic level but need sensory, S&L and regulation support.
Aspire and Excel : a strand for learners who are more able to advocate for their own needs and self-regulate but continue to need the support of their EHCP.
Engage and Respond: a small strand within the school for learners whose SEMH needs have become more significant than their cognition and learning needs.
At Westhaven, we understand that children experience different learning, sensory, and social or emotional difficulties associated with the classroom. From the research developed by Nancy Mather, Ph.D. and Sam Goldstein, Ph.D. we have developed a BASE level of learning which provides a structure for our strands.
Our curriculum therefore encompasses preparing for adulthood outcomes that include opportunities for employment, independent living, community inclusion, and health.
Our learning pathways allow a structure to lessons that builds, reflects, revisits, and reinforces knowledge and skills appropriate to the stage of development of the learner.
