Our School Offer

Apex Specialist Education is a group of alternative provision and independent specialist schools.
Matthew McCann and Daniel McCann are the founders of Apex Specialist Education and are both Co-Proprietors.
Matthew McCann is the Headteacher for Healey Learning Centre; the first Apex Specialist Education learning centre.
You can contact us directly via:
info@apex-specialisteducation.com or 07915 269 720.

Placements

Apex Specialist Education has been developed in line with recommendations set within:
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan (publishing.service.gov.uk)

We intend to offer Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 alternative provision placements. We also intend to offer specialist education provision.

At the point of referral we will work with commissioning partners to identify the intent, length, and expectations of potential placements. Gathering as much data as possible to ensure a strong continuity of education.

ASE welcomes transparency; so, at the point of commissioning, we ensure our potential pupils, parents/carers, and commissioning partners, are completely aware of what to expect; and we ensure the same towards them. We publish statutory policies/documents on the website, and have a wealth of policies accessible within centre at any time.

Our commitment to safeguarding, and data-protection governs all of our practices. You can find more information throughout our relevant policies, or within our Data Privacy Notices.

Our Offer

Following a referral to our service, we will begin a rapid information gathering process. The scope of this work will depend on the context of the placement (placement type, length etc..).

This will usually include a referral form, risk assessment, professionals meeting, pupil visit etc…. Post-admittance, new pupils will undergo a series of baseline assessments to properly identify any gaps in learning, and help inform their curriculum offer.

ASE will ensure pupil progress is meticulously tracked against referral targets/EHCP outcomes; and these will be reported on periodically. All pupils will have a dynamic positive behaviour plan and risk assessment completed within 6-12 weeks.

All stakeholders are invited in 6-weekly to review placements and progress.

Curriculum

Our curriculum has been designed to promote engagement, and ensure success for all children (please see our curriculum policy on Healey Learning Centre’s page for more detail). We deliver a broad and balanced academic curriculum which includes mathematics, English, science, art, PSHE, PE, multimedia, computing, and humanities.

In KS3 pupils are supported in engaging with the secondary KS3 national curriculum. Baseline assessments are completed in core (mathematics, English, and science) subjects, alongside standardised assessments to assess and identify areas of support.

Each Friday, we dedicate lessons (core) to recall; providing pupils the opportunity to revisit, reflect, correct, and develop on any work completed in that subject, over the week. This further reinforces skills and knowledge.

All KS4 pupils will be supported in accessing GCSEs within English, maths, and science. Additionally, pupils can select optional GCSEs, dependent on their interests, to further stimulate engagement in learning within KS4.

Disciplinary knowledge is mapped across our curriculum using WS P Steps (How we Assess Progress at Wilson Stuart School – Wilson Stuart School); this assessment framework, provides a means to assess age-related expectation on an ongoing basis (please see assessment policy for more details). Gaps in substantive and disciplinary knowledge, is considered within our planning, assessment, and curriculum policies.

All pupils are supported to engage in explicit (daily timetable) literacy sessions. We have timetable a drop everything and read (DEAR) session daily, where pupils are encouraged to read for pleasure. We have a process of ordering children-choice books each term, to promote increased engagement with our literacy strategy.

We deliver a SSP accredited phonics programme (RWI – Fresh Start) to pupils requiring literacy intervention. Students are taught at their challenge point, so they learn to read accurately and fluently. They will also develop good comprehension, spelling and punctuation skills through targeted activities.

Curriculum Policy

Assessment Policy

SMSC, PSHE, and British Values

Our commitment to Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural education is prevalent throughout all of our school’s practices. We are working towards UNICEF’s Rights Respecting Schools Award, Eco-Schools Green Flag, and are part of the Anti-Bullying Alliance. We expect all pupils to study religious education, and humanities. Furthermore our assemblies are informed by a cultural calendar, which helps us embed SMSC foci within the school. We also schedule/welcome guest speakers, and visits to further enrich pupils SMSC development. Our commitment to SMSC and British Values is detailed within our SMSC and British Values policy; it is also entrenched within our PSHE curriculum.

We commissioned Jigsaw’s award winning PSHE curriculum, which provides a structure for our PSHE offer. Jigsaw shapes young people to be confident and successful, increasing their capacity to learn and preparing them for the challenges of the modern world. Co-produced by teachers, young people and the Jigsaw Team, the programme provides young people with opportunities to develop their emotional intelligence and life skills and the ability to address socio-cultural and socio-economical challenges as global citizens.

Not only does Jigsaw meet all statutory RSHE requirements, but it also elevates educational outcomes with an emphasis on mental health and resilience.

SMSC and British Values Policy

PSHE and RSE Policy

Post-16

Apex Specialist Education, is passionate about upholding the Gatsby Benchmarks; our Careers Guidance Policy (see below) outlines how we aim to successfully achieve and uphold these standards within the context of our provision.

In addition to coordinating access to independent careers advice; Apex Specialist Education also aims to:
Help pupils prepare for the workplace, by building self-development and
career management skills.
Provide experience and a clear understanding of the working world.
Develop pupils’ awareness of the variety of education, training and career opportunities available to them.
Help pupils to understand routes to careers that they’re interested in, and to make informed choices about their next step in education or training.
Promote a culture of high aspirations and equality of opportunity.

We are working with local providers to promote a guest speaker (meaningful encounter) each half term. Our provider access policy below details the expectations/process for this.

Careers Guidance Policy

Provider Access Policy