Pastoral Support
Pastoral Support at Westfield School
The Westfield school ethos recognises the importance of holistic growth and development for each individual student to enable maximum development potential. When a student or their family need an extra layer of support, the pastoral team are available to offer additional assistance and emotional support
utilising a range of interventions.
Val (pastoral lead) runs social skills groups, which all students access from key stage 2 onwards. The groups aim to develop connectivity in all relationships, understand social expectations and form respectful, accepting and positive friendships, empowering their sense of belonging. Val is also trained to deliver group Theraplay to augment the delivery of social skills.
In addition, she can offer 1:1 low level emotional or developmental support via Therapeutic play, Drawing and Talking or a regular time slot to listen and support students experiencing difficult emotions or a challenging life experience. Val can also offer additional help for students confused by puberty, or how to develop and maintain healthy relationships.
We also work with a range of outside agencies who meet the threshold for higher level specialist support, such as CAMHS, Phoenix Bereavement Support, etc.
THRIVE
The connections children and young people have with the adults around them is key. Repetition of positive experiences developed through Thrive activities supports their development, helping them to:
Feel good about themselves and know they matter,
Increase their sense of security and trust,
Improve their capacity to be creative and curious,
Increase their self-esteem and confidence to learn,
Learn to recognise and regulate their feelings,
Learn to think before behaving in a certain way,
...and much more.
Our trained Thrive practitioner offers 1:1, small group and whole class Thrive sessions throughout the week. The focus is around using arts-based activities and engaging with outside learning to work towards outcomes based on a tailored, individual action plan.
See More About Thrive
