Greenside provides education to learners with very complex needs. All have EHCPs and the majority present with Severe Learning Difficulties. Over 70% of our learners have Autism that impact their lives and 15% have profound needs and disabilities.

Every learner is different. It is hard to compare and group our learners. Our curriculum flexes between a personalised detailed understanding of the learner) and an inclusive pathway model that allows creative, engaging learning to be developed that matches their developmental potential. This article explores the rationale behind our curriculum and reasoning behind its decisions (https://my.chartered.college/impact_article/designing-a-curriculum-the-challenge-faced-by-many-specialist-settings/)

At Greenside we are proud of how our pathways prepare our learners for their future lives. From a detailed, personalised Early Years to our community-based Preparing for Adulthood pathway. Each decision made is rooted on a learners EHCP outcomes and mapping these to a pathway’s themes and lessons. Together they offer our learners a breadth of learning opportunities that allow progression towards a fulfilled future.

Each class is within a pathway. Each pathway is led by a Senior Teacher who is responsible for ensuring a quality and creative provision is maintained. These embedded leads ensure each pathway sequentially fits into learners personal school life journey. Through a constant formative assessment approach, we are confident each learner has a breadth of experience and learning that supports their own detailed developmental path.

We are proud that communication is central to all our pathways. The development of communication is fundamentally important for our complex cohort, many of which struggle to communicate their wants and wishes. We understand that majority of our cohort are at the early stages of their communication development.

Information below explains our curriculum, outlined in our handbook, how we assess and more information on who we develop communication and early reading in our school.

Progression of our learners and their achievement is at the centre of life at Greenside. The majority of our learners have very complex needs and sometimes their achievement does not track in a traditional way, often lateral progress is needed to support our learners reach their potential.

Outcomes are central to each of our learners and as a school we strive to ensure these are set with long-term aims and goals in mind. Preparing for Adulthood principles and opportunities post-Greenside are always in mind, from Early years through to our Preparing for Adulthood (PfA) provision.

To help us ensure all learners achieve outstanding progress at Greenside we have a unique assessment approach that is personalised and individual. In some respects, it is impossible to compare any learner’s outcomes, progress and evidence. But to help us to plan for greater Teaching and Learning we do analyse data as a whole.
As Greenside caters for a wide chronological age range as well as a many different needs, specific assessment tools are used to enable class team’s monitor, record, share and celebrate progress and achievement. These are:

• Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) assessment frame work – for learners in our nursery and reception classes.
• Routes for Learning – for young people who have profound learning difficulties
• Autism Education Trust (AET) – for some of our autistic learners
• PIVATS – An assessment tool developed by Lancashire County Council, used to assess learners in aspects of Reading, Writing, Maths as well as Personal and Social Development.
• RARPA – Recognising and Recording Progress and Achievement. An framework set up in partnership with North Herts College to track employability and PfA knowledge development.

At Greenside we are proud to be reflective school. More information that supports our assessment decisions can be found in our Assessment Policy and a recent Chartered College of Teaching article (https://my.chartered.college/impact_article/assessing-progress-in-special-schools-reviews-and-recommendations/)

Greenside has a well established creative program which offers students from across the school access to a range of creative activities. We employ a team of dedicated creative professionals working in art, drama, music and dance.

Greenside's creative programme centres around the talents, imaginations, desires and needs of each learner. Over many years of reflective and dynamic practice and sustained working relationships with experienced professional artists, musicians, dancers and theatre makers, a  consistent approach has been developed in which the learner is placed at the centre of the creative interaction. 

Click here for more information about our arts program.

At Greenside we plan for our learner’s future throughout their time at school. Our ‘My’ curriculum has ‘preparing for adulthood’ principles embedded into each phase of our school and there is a destination focus for each of the main transition points many of our learners go through while they are with us. Click here for details about how we prepare learners for their next steps beyond Greenside.

Click here for more information

Two education providers working together to enable further education opportunities for young adults who have profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD).
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2Learn is a partnership between Greenside School and North Hertfordshire College (NHC).

A former bank at The Hyde shopping centre, Stevenage has been transformed into a specialist learning resource in the heart of the community. The facility features a multi-sensory room, café dining area, accessible kitchen, drama studio, IT suite, excise space and changing place.

Staff from Greenside and NHC work together to deliver a highly personalised, creative, person-centred curriculum.

Each student enrols at NHC. They are based at the 2Learn resource. As part of their individual timetable, each student undertakes learning activities at the college as well as the Greenside Studio (a social enterprise located a few metres from 2Learn). Students also access the warm water swimming pool at Greenside School. An accessible vehicle enables access to NHC and the wider community. 

Accessible Outings

Activities and Online Resources to Support Home Learning

Sensory Stories

Therapeutic Dance

Things to do After School and During the Holidays

Support Networks