Family Liasion & Support

Family Support 

All staff at Sherwood Foundation School work in a trans-disciplinary way. The transdisciplinary model of practice aims to provide more family-centred, coordinated, and integrated services to meet the complex needs of children with disabilities and their families. We believe that working closely with parents, carers and family members is the key to ensure our learners achieve the best possible outcomes for their future. 

At our School we aim to work in co-production with parents and carers.  This means we strive to use a collaborative approach where parents and professionals work as equal partners to design, deliver, and evaluate services. This approach is based on the principle that parents, carers, and professionals all have valuable contributions to make, and that by working together, better outcomes can be achieved for children and young people with SEND. We therefore aim to actively involve parents and carers in the development of our school through: 

• Parents and professionals working together to make decisions about services and support offered by the school. 
• Parents and professionals jointly develop solutions and strategies for meeting the needs of the children and young people at our school.  This is completed through close TDT working to ensure co-creation of EHCPs, wellbeing strategies, school procedures and training offered 
• All parties involved are considered equal partners with valuable contributions to make.  This approach is particularly applied when dealing with conflict or resolving issues and concerns. 

By working collaboratively with our parents we wish to ensure that all participants are treated as equals with equal value; that we recognize and value the diverse perspectives and experiences of all participants; we ensure that all participants benefit from the co-production process; we continue to build trust and openness in communication and relationships; and that we all acknowledge that all participants share responsibility for the outcomes. 

Our staff work hard to continuously build a good dialogue with families through:

• Class Dojo
• Home- school communication books / emails
• Weekly newsletter
• Open days, school events and termly parent’s evenings
• Annual Review meetings
• Individual telephone conversations and meetings. 
• Coproduction events

We always welcome parents and carers to contact the school to discuss any concerns with the class teacher, members of the class team or wider leadership team.  

At Sherwood Foundation School we offer families support in a range of areas.  This includes: 

• Sign-posting to services and outside agencies e.g. Health services, financial support services, transport, charities, social care, parent support groups, leisure activities for young people.
• Completing Early Help Assessments or Short Breaks Review Forms.
• Creating opportunities for parents, carers and other family members to meet through coffee mornings, school events and training sessions.
• Creating opportunities for siblings and young carers to meet & receive support

At Sherwood Foundation School we aim for families to be involved and knowledgeable about the education offered at our School and invite them to participate in various learning activities organised throughout the year. Parents, relatives and friends are invited to events such Citizenship Assemblies, Achievement Celebrations, Christmas Production, Carol Service and Sports Events.