Recent Developments
A number of changes and developments have taken place over the past two years, spearheading the drive to bring the two schools together to form a single, county wide provision.
- Merger of two schools. Following the closure of Cheltenham and Tewkesbury Alternative Provision School and the expansion of Stroud and Cotswolds Alternative Provision, Severn Valley School opened in January 2022
- Quality of provision: A successful Ofsted inspection at GFAPs in January 2022, which means that all LA commissioned Alternative Provision is judged ‘Good’ by Ofsted. In addition we have been piloting the use of the alternative provision benchmark toolkit produced by IntegratED. This has been done through a self-assessment and peer-review model. This is an exciting national development that is looking to address the crucial question of ‘what are the characteristics of a good quality AP?’
- Quality of environments: Improvement works have been undertaken on all sites to enhance the learning environments. This includes the closure of the Joys Green site and the opening of Rutherford House, a brand-new primary provision in Gloucester in September ’21, which provides a much-needed emphasis on the needs of the primary sector.
- A new service offer: The funding and commissioning models have been changed so that the schools are now able to provide a part-funded outreach and partnership offer to mainstream schools. This provides a much need emphasis on early intervention for those at risk of exclusion. children who are struggling with the Social Emotional Mental Health needs in their mainstream setting.
- Understanding the quality of assessment: A detailed review of the current approaches to assessing children’s needs has been undertaken and reported. The aim of this review was to understand common issues around the assessment of children’s and to secure more consistency of approach. The focus of this review started with AP, but quickly broadened to include mainstream provision, as it became clear that the quality of assessment and use of the graduated pathway in mainstream was inconsistent. The report makes a number of recommendations to improve assessment processes, some of which we aim to incorporate and embed within the development of the graduated pathway.
- Developing models of effective transition: Effective transition in and out of Alternative Provision is critical, given the intended, short-term nature of support. Again, this is an area that has recently been reviewed, with a view to understanding the conditions for successful transition and embedding more consistent approaches across the county.
- The therapeutic offer: We have completed a review of the therapeutic offer available at AP. To successfully operate AP, must find a positive blend between academic progress and therapeutic intervention and support. The report has just been completed by one of our education psychologists and is with the Head teachers for consideration.
- Effective systems and processes: To support changes to the way in which we commission services we have been adapting our systems and processes to ensure greater alignment between the inclusion service and AP, and the use of digital solutions to enable a consistent county wide approach (e.g., development of a single, county wide partnership referral process with clear referral criteria). A glossary of terms has also been created to improve understanding and a common language of the terminology used around AP.
What our students and parents say about us
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“Thank you for all the amazing support you have shown *** since he has been at SCAPS. He has loved learning to ride and enjoyed school so much!”
(Parent of Year 3 student at Severn Valley) -
“Thank you…I want you to know I’m really grateful for all your work in helping me to grow.”
(Severn Valley Student) -
“You’ve helped me throughout my hardest times. I really appreciate your moral support; I will never forget you or the school.”
(Severn Valley Student) -
I am thrilled that x has started to open up to staff at Raikes. Thank you so much for all the support given by the staff. Whilst I didn’t want him to come to the school, he is the happiest he has ever been, and I can see a real difference in him
(Parent of GFAPS Student)
What Ofsted says about us
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“GFAPS is a school where pupils’ needs are identified quickly, understood and values. Staff share high aspirations for all…. pupils study personalised programmes. They reengage with learning because they know staff care about how well they do.”
(Ofsted Inspection, January 2022, GFAPS) -
“Highly skilled specialist teachers help pupils to re-engage with learning… Pupils benefit from an ambitious curriculum that provides a wide range of experiences beyond academic lessons.”
(Ofsted October 2019, Stroud & Cotswold Alternative Provision School)
