Our Curriculum
Our GHES Curriculum
Mission statement: We are dedicated to transforming the learning experience for young people with mental and physical health needs whilst they are unable to attend their main school. We provide education and support tailored to each student's unique challenges. We champion resilience, academic success, and overall wellbeing, ensuring that all students can thrive both academically and personally.
Our Curriculum Statement is informed by the principles outlined in the statutory guidance Arranging education for children who cannot attend school because of health needs DfE, December 2023.
Our Vision is to provide an inclusive, nurturing and high-quality education that is flexible and responsive to each student’s needs, empowering all to thrive both academically and emotionally.
Our Curriculum is underpinned by our Core Values
- Nurture – We see and nurture every child’s unique qualities.
- Confidence – We build confidence and self-esteem so everyone can flourish.
- Determination – We are determined to remove barriers to enable students to thrive and achieve.
- Care – We educate with care and empathy.
- Safe – We provide an environment that allows everyone to feel safe.
Our curriculum is designed to ensure that every child and young person receiving education through our provision has access to high-quality, personalised learning that supports both their academic progress and emotional wellbeing. We recognise that each learner’s journey is unique, shaped by their health needs, prior experiences, and aspirations for the future.
We aim to:
Provide continuity of education in line with the National Curriculum, enabling pupils to maintain progress and a sense of normality whilst they are unable to attend their main school.
Adapt teaching to individual needs, ensuring flexibility in pace, content, and delivery to reflect medical circumstances and recovery.
Foster resilience, confidence, and a love of learning, supporting pupils to re-engage with education and prepare for reintegration to their main school or next stage of learning as soon as their medical condition allows.
Create a safe, inclusive, and inspiring learning environment where every pupil feels valued, supported, and empowered to achieve their potential—academically and personally—despite the challenges of ill health.
Prepare students to take external exams and gain qualifications that open doors to future opportunities.
Develop essential skills for success, including confidence, resilience, determination, and independence.
Encourage students to make healthy and safe choices, preparing them for life and work in a complex and dynamic world.
Provide opportunities for students to experience learning beyond the classroom, broadening their horizons and enriching their personal growth.
Ensure that every student can thrive and achieve their full potential, overcoming challenges posed by health, medical, or special educational needs.
Implementation: How we do it
At GHES, we have developed the Golden Reflection Questions. These underpin the planning and evaluation of our lessons, give a structure so every lesson includes these key elements and draw on good practice to meet the needs of our students so they are enabled to learn.
We are committed to providing a flexible, inclusive, and supportive curriculum that meets the unique needs of each student. We do this through:
Collaborative partnerships between GHES, medical professionals, and the main school to ensure a cohesive approach to supporting the child’s education and well-being.
Comprehensive assessment and planning in all subjects allowing us to track progress and adapt teaching to meet individual needs.
Personalised timetables designed to align with each student’s health condition ensuring access to education at a pace that suits their individual circumstances.
Re-engagement for students who are unable to access the academic curriculum due to significant ill health. We provide tailored engagement sessions to build social skills, confidence and motivation, and enable them to reconnect with education.
Student Support Plans for every student. This is a tailored plan illustrating and supporting their progress on the GHES journey in terms of engagement with education; academic progress; social interaction; health management and transition goals.
Our core curriculum prioritises English Language, Maths, Science, and PSHE; and is complemented by creative arts.
Our enrichment curriculum includes Cre8, Communic8 and Collabor8 sessions which foster oracy, literacy, and social skills.
Working with external agencies to offer extra activities including mentoring, Musicworks, therapeutic play, wellbeing and yoga to support learning and friendships.
Diverse teaching approaches include online lessons, face-to-face sessions, one-to-one and group learning opportunities.
Strong pastoral support coordinated by our pastoral team which enables students to engage and thrive in their education.
PSHE which is delivered individually or in small groups, and allows students to explore their values and beliefs, understand their rights and responsibilities, and develop essential skills for life.
Our careers programme so that students develop aspirations and hope for the future, and are equipped to make informed decisions about their next steps.
Targeted interventions which focus on key areas such as phonics, reading and inference, ensuring students can build strong foundational skills to support their academic progress.