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The HHTS Curriculum Model

Our curriculum is broad; going beyond the National Curriculum and encompassing academic study, creative expression, personal development, character education and vocational skill development. We regularly work with external organisations and professionals to extend our offer and raise students’ aspirations.

Our curriculum is responsive; timetables are altered regularly to meet the needs of learners as they join us. New subjects are developed and rotated in as needed. Our skilled staff team are able to deliver course content and accreditations across National Curriculum subjects while also developing enrichment programmes in response to pupils’ interests and needs.

Our curriculum strikes a balance; HHTS staff liaise with students’ home schools to ascertain programmes of study and expected levels of progress and then prepare and deliver work accordingly. This multi-faceted approach, balancing academic and enrichment work with hospital and home school curricula, ensures that all students have the opportunity to flourish in their learning whilst taking their particular mental health and medical needs into account.

Our team of teachers and Higher-Level Teaching Assistants (HLTAs) work across CAMHS Campus School at Springfield Hospital, the School at St George’s Hospital and community education services. This enables us to offer a breadth of subjects across all the sectors of the organisation delivered by key stage and subject specialists.

Our Three-Part Approach

In order to ensure each student is offered an appropriate curriculum at the point of admission, our teachers run a three-part approach across the service:

  1. The HHTS Curriculum: This approach includes teachers using the national curriculum and national accreditations with an aspirational Head Heart Hands framework to plan their HHTS curriculum. Annual planning is completed for each subject. This constant annual curriculum plan for each key stage serves students as they arrive into school.
  2. Identifying gaps in learning: Teaching staff are simultaneously assessing and addressing gaps in student understanding.
  3. The home school curriculum. Teachers liaise with the young person’s school immediately upon admission to ascertain the young person’s prior attainment and current programmes of study; this is then used when the student is ready with modifications as needed.

The HHTS Curriculum is a dynamic and engaging annual curriculum programme for students who are with us on a short-term basis or whose school does not supply adequate curriculum content. Our timetable mirrors a mainstream National Curriculum offer, ensuring our programme is in line with nationally recognised accreditations, including GCSE, Functional Skills and A Levels.

Simultaneously, each teacher is assessing and addressing gaps in learning while liaising with new students’ home schools to ascertain the young person’s prior programme of study. From these sources, individualised schemes of work are generated for our long-term students. Through this approach we ensure that students are supported to bridge gaps in learning, make accelerated progress and keep up with their peers during their period of illness.

WHHTS Head Heart Hands Programme

 

We use the Head, Heart and Hands curriculum model, originally named by School 21, in multiple ways. It is used to review our curriculum offer in its entirety; to ensure that we are delivering a holistic education. Each subject lead also considers the opportunities for intellectual, emotional and skills-based learning within their curriculum. Finally, we hold thematic project days based on the principles of Head, Heart and Hands enabling students to become entrepreneurs, researchers, ethical citizens and creatives within real-life learning scenarios.

Our curriculum principles ensure our curriculum offer:

  • is challenging and develops students’ knowledge, skills and intellect (HEAD)
  • facilitates students to develop tolerance and kindness towards themselves and others (HEART)
  • encourages all of us to hold high expectations and learn skills to make beautiful work (HANDS)
  • is broad; offering continued and new opportunities for achievement and increased wellbeing
  • is personalised and responsive to each young person’s needs, enabling students to keep up with peers during and following a period of illness
  • is delivered through high quality, dynamic teaching by subject specialists

Examinations and accreditations
Learning is accredited through a wide range of external accreditations including GCSEs, Functional Skills, BTECs, A Levels and the AQA Unit Award Scheme. We are also a Signature Centre, enabling us to assess students for British Sign Language Level 1 and 2 examinations. We are continuously adding to our offer, and increasing the exam boards that we work with.

Our flexible approach ensures maximum access to exams both on and off-site as HHTS works closely with pupils’ home schools to ensure continuity at whatever point students may join or leave us.

We are part of a national partnership via the National Association of Hospital Education and Prisum that allows us to benchmark our exam outcomes, ensuring our attainment data is in line with or exceeds that of students in similar settings nationally.

Curriculum progression
In order to ensure that we are closely following and tracking pupil progress in line with the National Curriculum, each department is using progression criteria devised from the national curriculum or nationally recognised accreditations. These progression criteria are then used to create personalised learning aims. These aims are then reviewed and tracked to evidence progress over time.

The HHTS Academic Curriculum offer

The HHTS Academic Curriculum consists of timetabled sessions on:

Subject
Level/Accreditations

English

●        Language

●        Literature

 

Functional Skills

GCSE

A Level

Maths

Functional Skills

GCSE

A Level

Core Maths

Edexcel Awards

Financial Education

Science

●        Biology

●        Chemistry

●        Physics

Entry Level

BTEC Applied

GCSE (incl. triple)

A Level

Computing

●        ICT

●        Computing

Functional Skills

GCSE

A Level

Humanities

●        History

●        Geography

●        Religious Studies

●        Sociology

●        Psychology

●        Philosophy and Ethics

GCSE

A Level

 

Performing Arts

●        Drama

●        Expressive Arts

●        Music (incl. Ukulele)

GCSE

A Level

 

Deaf Studies

●        Deaf History

●        British Sign Language

Specialist subjects: Deaf provision

Signature BSL Accreditations Levels 1 and 2

Personal and Social Development

●        Emotions

●        PSHE

 

Art

●        Photography

●        Fine Art

●        Textiles

●        History of Art

Arts Award

GCSE

A Level

 

Languages

●        Spanish

●        German

●        French

●        BSL

●        Other subjects are taught at home schools including Latin and Mandarin

GCSE

A Level

Signature BSL Accreditations Levels 1 and 2

Politics

●        Current Affairs

GCSE

A Level

 

Careers and Employability

Taught through specific careers events, trips and collapsed timetable days/weeks in addition to year-round timetable of careers visitors and vocationally focussed lessons.

Supported by Connexions Careers Service including 1:1 sessions for students approaching transition points or requiring additional guidance.

Guided Independent Study

A chance for pupils to focus on work from their home provision, with the support of our highly skilled education team

‘Every day my son looks forward to going to school – to get away from his room, and all the poking and prodding from doctors is such a relief. He is treated like a school boy, rather than a patient, and I think this has as much healing properties as medicine! Due to his illness, my son has missed about a month of schooling, but hopefully will have caught up because of the hospital school.’

(Parent, 2018)

‘Wow, where to begin. I wanted to write to you to demonstrate how much of a positive impact you have had on me……you have restored my faith in teachers everywhere...the CAMHS Campus School was definitely the highlight of Springfield for me as is the case for so many others. Rest assured if I ever get involved in the murky world of politics your funding will be quadrupled, ring-fenced and seared forever.’
‘We are so grateful and thankful for the brilliant staff at the St. George’s Hospital School. We have spent quite a lot of time there over the past 18 months, they have made learning such fun – memorable science experiments and story writing, the best time making posters and adverts and treats for the school cafe. The staff are cheerful, calm, gentle and above all fun. Thank you to the great team.’
‘We were so grateful to the teaching team. They have been absolutely fantastic. My daughter had surgery on Monday and was quiet and withdrawn. This has been instrumental in her recovery and also kept her mind on education whilst she’s been sick.’
‘Everyday my son looks forward to going to school – to get away from his room, and all the poking and prodding from doctors is such a relief. He is treated like a school boy, rather than a patient, and I think this has as much healing properties as medicine! Due to his illness, my son has missed about a month of schooling, but hopefully will have caught up because of the hospital school.’
‘We are so grateful and happy for the care and support – teachers are so helpful and very kind, we love you all for your hard work, keep it up. Thanks so much.’
‘Thank you for the range of learning opportunities you provided my son in hospital for the week for the week he was on the neuro ward. He found the activities very engaging and accessible. He thoroughly enjoys maths and looked forward to the activities you provided for this – he is especially looking forward to the spreadsheet analysis this afternoon. he enjoys music and was surprised to have the opportunity to learn about and play different instruments. Thanks again for all your help.’
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‘We are so grateful that there is a school/classroom to attend. Josie really needs something to focus on when he’s in hospital, he looks forward to getting out of his room and working/studying English, Maths and other interesting topics he can learn about. It has really made a difference to his mood during the hospital stays, having been admitted so many times throughout the past 7 months. Furthermore, it helps him keep on top of his schooling.’
‘Thank you for helping me for the past 10 months. You have helped me to keep as motivated and hopeful for my future as I could have been. I cant wit to start college and maybe become a paramedic. I’ll always remember this school and everyone in it’
‘The service aims to enable pupils with long-term illnesses, mental health issues or who are pregnant to remain in education…... You and your staff ensure that these aims are fully met. Most pupils have missed long periods of learning due to illness. They make remarkable progress during their short time in the school.
Pupils told us that, without the school, they would not be able to engage fully in learning or sit any examinations. Parents value the high-quality teaching provided alongside the excellent care and support given to each individual pupil.’

Ofsted, 2018

Education at HHTS

Student Wellbeing

Staff Wellbeing

Making a Referral

Keeping Yourself Safe