THE BRIDGE SCHOOL

The Bridge School will open in September 2010 following the amalgamation of Heathside and Belstead Schools. The Bridge School will have separate primary and secondary campuses while a new school, planned for 2014 under the BSF Programme, is developed.  Prior to the building of a new school on a mainstream secondary site, the Early Years Foundation Stage provision will be co-located within a newly built primary school that will open in 2012 in the grounds of the mainstream secondary site.

In 2014, the KS1, KS2, KS3 and KS4 pupils and staff, and multi-agency professionals, will move into the new school which will have inclusive links with the mainstream primary and secondary school on the campus.

The Bridge School will be a special school for pupils aged 3-16 with severe, profound and complex learning difficulties. An increasing number of pupils also have an autistic spectrum disorder. 

The Bridge School has an exciting future ahead of it. The whole school community is committed to using the amalgamation, and the BSF Programme, as a springboard  to build on the “good” and “outstanding” provision recognised by Ofsted (June 2009) to develop world class provision for our children and their families.

Our school’s strengths are:

 We work closely with colleagues from many other disciplines and, whilst recognising our different roles and responsibilities, we strongly believe that a well co-ordinated multi-agency approach provides the best level of support to meet the special educational needs of our pupils.  A team philosophy is a strength of the school.  This supportive network includes all the adults working with the pupils on a daily basis.  The common purpose for everyone is the same – to provide the highest quality of education for all pupils.  Our Charter, “Children First”, expresses our commitment to educate pupils in a challenging yet caring and sensitive way, respecting their rights as children.  “Children First” is our starting point in everything we do.

The primary campus is situated next to Ipswich Hospital but is a totally separate provision from the hospital.  It has its own indoor swimming pool, a soft play area, a multi-sensory studio, a hall, two minibuses, and extensive and varied playground areas.  There are bases for physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy as well as the usual classrooms.  

The secondary campus is situated about nine miles from the primary campus across the other side of Ipswich. It also has an indoor swimming pool, soft play room, multi sensory room, a sports hall, sensory garden and extensive grounds.  Health professionals are based on the secondary campus too. 

Close links are being established with the new inclusive sixth form school, Suffolk One, that is opening in September 2010 where current, and future, KS 5 students will transfer for further education learning opportunities.

In September 2010 there will be approximately 100 pupils on roll with 65 EYFS, KS1 & KS2 based at the primary campus and 35 students based at the secondary campus.  Each class teacher is supported by a team of Learning Mentors and/or Teaching Assistants and staffing levels are dependent of the range of needs present in the class.

The pupils and students are taught in a number of different ways including class groups, small groups and individually.  The learning opportunities we offer the children are based around the requirements of the Foundation Stage Curriculum, the National Curriculum and the Foundation Learning Tier. 

Staff are very creative in interpreting the guidelines and presenting a varied curriculum to the children in a manner that is appropriate to their needs.  In addition to the academic side of the education we provide there is a big emphasis on developing independence, social skills, work related skills and self help skills. We use many resources within our local community and aim to participate as fully as possible in community life.

 We have good links with many of the local primary and secondary schools and often join them for activities throughout the year. A significant number of the children on the primary campus have a dual placement with their local school. 

Where we feel there is a need we aim to develop specialist provision for particular groups of children.  Like many other schools we have seen an increase in the number of children with autism attending the school.  To better meet their needs we have introduced the TEACCH structured approach to learning and have worked closely with parents, carers and other professionals to ensure it is successful. 

Similarly, we have introduced the M.O.V.E. (Movement Opportunities Via Education) programme for children with physical and mobility difficulties. M.O.V.E. aims to maximise the independent movement that children are capable of through the use of carefully worked out programmes supported by a variety of specialist equipment.

Developing effective communication skills is a key priority for all of our pupils.  We have successfully embedded the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) into our daily practice and this has led to improved communication opportunities for many pupils.

We are proud of the achievements we have made over the years and always welcome visitors to the school.

 Odran Doran

Headteacher