Oxley Park Academy

We welcome our new blogger, Ross Griffin who is Year 6 Leader.

With the New Year upon us, Oxley Park Academy decided that the time was right to reflect on our learning so far in terms of the development and implementation of One Page Profiles across the school. So, together with Gill from HSA, we had a session with the team to look at what was and wasn't working, from different perspectives. We worked in year groups and shared what we wanted to celebrate and which areas we wanted to focus on in the coming terms. One of our action points was to refresh the work we have been doing with the children in supporting them to develop their profiles. We will share some of our other action in future blogs!

We had already just developed a new Medium Term Plan to do this work with children in Key Stage 2, linked to the National Curriculum, and we decided to also develop a specific plan for Foundation and Key Stage 1 children. As personalising children's learning has always been paramount at Oxley Park Academy, teachers constantly strive to ensure learning is fun yet individualised to match all children's levels and needs so this fitted in perfectly.

Stage One of this new adventure consisted of three parts: Like and Admire; Good day/Bad day and Building Support.

Like and Admire:

The creation of the One Page Profile began with an activity known as 'like and admire.' Here children had the opportunity to comment and record some of the many qualities their classmates had. Such an activity promoted team building skills as well as developing children's speaking and listening. By the end of the session each child had an individualised profile sheet with lovely comments created by their peers. Overall this was an uplifting experience for all.

Good Day, Bad Day:

Week number two started with children contemplating what it was that made school such an enjoyable experience. Working in pairs they drafted a list of key criteria which together helped create a learning environment which was fun, caring and suited to their individual needs. Such a focused activity quickly enabled all learners to understand what it was that helped them learn and build upon pre-existing fundamental skills. To appreciate these further, learners worked in groups to consider what subsequently would result in an unhappy or as some would say 'a less productive day'.

Building Support:

The final part of stage one was 'Building Support'. Having identified in the previous session what it is that helped us learn, it was easy to see how individualised this approach was going to be. Yet after recognising what these steps were we now had to put in place workable steps to move the process further. It was here that we entered the solutions stage. Children worked in pairs to identify and come up with steps to ensure that measures were in place to achieve what we now knew as the 'good day'.

We have more work we want to do, particularly in involving parents in the development of the children's profiles, and we are looking forward to learning from this.

With the snow still falling around us, we look forward to the half term break before building further on this and embarking upon Stage Two; One Page Profiles in Operation.

Wow, what an exciting time we are having at Oxley Park Academy!

I'm thrilled and delighted to say that we won the National Teaching award for 'UK Outstanding School Team of the Year', that I mentioned in my last blog! Our Mayor visited to help us celebrate. Pete Winkleman, Karl Robinson and Shaun Williams from MK Dons came to congratulate us. How the children enjoyed our day of celebration!

And, it is clear to see our focus on personalisation and person centred approaches has developed team spirit (which includes all members of our school community) in a really special way.

But, as you are probably aware, here at OPA we don't sit on our laurels!! Oh no (!!), we continue to develop and move forward our personalisation approach and support others to do so too.

In November, Ross, our Year 6 phase leader, and I continued our training to become accredited person centred approaches trainers when we jointly facilitated a two day Person Centred Review training course.  Representatives from schools across Milton Keynes and other neighbouring Local Authorities joined us to learn all about the many benefits of person centred approaches and person centred reviews. We practised using person centred tools to gather information such as good day/bad day, what's working/not working with them.  We shared our OPA approach and examples from our own practice as well as helping them to develop a strategy for using this approach in their schools.  All were extremely enthusiastic about using this approach in their schools and there were many converts! I'm expecting to see the use of these approaches in an ever growing number of schools.

Also in November, Gill Goodwin from HSA came for her second visit to OPA to continue the journey of supporting the development of quality one page profiles for all children across the school.  She met with Ross and Jane to plan staff meetings to lead the development of medium term curriculum plans to enable the development of quality one page profiles to be embedded with the school's annual curriculum cycle.  So work carries on at a pace to further develop effective person centred approaches at OPA.

Alongside this, we have had our autumn term round of Person Centred Review meetings which remain a breath of fresh air as we focus on the children and their needs, over and above the procedures of the statutory processes.  And the same is true of our performance management meetings which truly focus on individuals through the use of the teachers' own one page profiles. And you can all see how the latter works by watching the One Page Profiles film that was launched at the House of Commons in October.  Cathy and Mel, our Foundation/Year 1 phase leader, show you very beautifully how this works in practice.  I was lucky enough to attend the launch; it was great to meet lots of people with the same outlook on life, and especially other bloggers that I've only seen photos of!   It was great to meet you all and I look forward to the next time!!

Our very special visitors, who I told you about last time, have now been and gone! Helen and Gill from HSA spent a planning day with me and led a staff meeting to move forward the effective use of One Page Profiles at OPA.

My last blog explained about using One Page Profiles for all in the school community as part of our Personal Provision Plan approach.  However, I have not yet told you what this approach is; so here we go!

Each child in school has a Personal Provision Plan.  For many children, this will be their One Page Profile. This provides the important information to enable the child's learning to be personalised. However, some children may need additional support for a variety of reasons; they may be gifted and talented or have a special need or disability, they may have English as an additional language or have social and emotional needs. A Personal Target Sheet, detailing individual targets, will also be part of the Personal Provision Plan for these children. A Personal Support Plan, detailing additional support needed across the school day, may also be used. Each class has a Personalisation Box for easy access to the Personal Provision Plans.  This is used by the adults working with the children.

This is the current approach.  However, the discussion with Helen and Gill led to the idea of incorporating these three documents into one - a 'One Page Profile Plus'.  This maintains the One Page Profile at the centre of personalisation with the 'Plus' being additions to include curriculum/additional targets and/or any additional supports needed.  What a brilliant, logical approach to personalisation. We are now going to trial this with one or two children…so more about this another time.

After these discussions, a staff meeting built on previous ones (September blog) focusing on including parents views and key points for updating One Page Profiles.  The key events in the school's annual calendar were mapped out on large boards.  Staff added their views on when/how one page profiles could be worked on/up dated/parent's views sort etc. within this outline.  We ended up with boards full of red dots (!) and an agreed way forward.  There's plenty of work to do!

So our very special visitors may have been and gone, but they'll be back!  I'll let you know next steps soon.

But I can't leave it there without mentioning three very special events this month; it's a really exciting time at OPA!  Firstly, we've had the BBC filming in school!  What an experience!  We are all delighted and thrilled to be in the final of the National Teaching Awards for 'Team of the Year' to be held later this month.  Personalisation and person centred approaches definitely develop team spirit in a way that would be very difficult to achieve to the same depth otherwise.  And the excitement continues to grow as secondly, we were invited to Pride of MK Award in recognition of this.  And on it goes as, thirdly, we attend the launch of the One Page Profiles film (May blog) at the House of Commons, again later this month.

Can't wait to tell you more about all this next time...

What a busy start to a new school year we have had!  All the children returning full of enthusiasm for their new school term; Year 6 children proudly wearing their special 'top of the school' blazers and the Foundation children touring the building 'wide eyed' and in awe of their new surroundings! And what is even more exciting…very soon all these children and everyone in between will have their own one page profile!

Our vision of personalisation for all is continuing full steam ahead.  Many children and teachers at OPA have one page profiles already; they play a pivotal role in personalising our 'school offer'and enable everyone, most importantly the child and their parent, to have their say and for this to be listened to and shared.  Consequently, one page profiles for all is the centre piece of our Personal Provision Plans approach.  And the time is right to develop these for all children and adults in our school community.

So, we've had a flurry of work across the school on one page profiles.  Year 6 have been using person centred tools such as 'good day bad day' and templates to write about what they like and admire about each other.Foundation stage teachers have been developing these with parents as part of their home visits which has been very positively received.  And a whole range of other activities have been progressing in all year groups.  It's amazing how insightful children are about each other at a very young age.  One class has even managed to get these up on display already! And, great news…an experienced parent volunteer, totally engaged in this approach, is beginning to work with small groups of children using the'good day bad day' tool through art activities to develop their one page profile further.

But, it's not only the children who are engaging in such activities.  In our first staff meeting of the new school year, new teachers learned all about and created their own one page profiles.  Unfortunately, although I had the camera with me, I got so involved in the session that I forgot to take photos!  So sorry, none of those to show you this time!

This was closely followed by a full staff meeting using the 'four plus one' question tool to obtain everyone's views on where we are at and moving forward with our vision of one page profiles for all.  This generated much discussion and loads of brilliant ideas about how to progress.  The ideas just went on and on! And, what's more, we'll have the chance to discuss these with a very special visitor next week…Helen Sanderson is visiting.  I'll tell you all about it next time!

And more about our Personal Provision Plans approach next time too…

It has been an incredibly eventful time since my last blog; I have so much I want to share with you that I hardly know where to start!  Here's some of it!

My third person centred review for Josh was extremely productive. You will see from Jane's blog below ( July 2011) that Josh made great progress last year. I'm thrilled to say that Josh has continued on this path. It was great to get together with everyone involved with Josh's success and discuss all the wonderful things about him. Josh shared his views using words and photos and we were able to address issues that are important to Josh. Together, we devised an updated Personal Provision Plan, which included his one page profile. I am also delighted to say I have taken another step closer to my accreditation as a trainer in person centred approaches; my mentor gave positive feedback! Phew!

Some of our children have taken part in research for MENCAP; they are gathering the views of people of all ages about what's important to them now and in the future.  Some of our children worked with the researcher to share their views. Person centred approaches such as 'good day bad day' and 'what's important to them now' were used.  The power of such tools to gain views is incredible; a rich amount of data was gathered which will be invaluable for MENCAP.

It's prize giving time at OPA. I was extremely proud and thoroughly delighted to present Zach with the second HSA Award for Progress through Person Centred Learning. Through using person centred tools, targeted and shared approaches have enabled Zach to grow in confidence and independence. This year, he learnt his part and performed beautifully in the Year 2 concert and has also joined a local cricket club after school. Not only this, but Zach also helped to disseminate person centred approaches to others through taking part in the one page profiles film.  His family have supported this 100%.  All true advocates of the power of person centred approaches and truly deserving of this award.

Next time…more about how our vision towards Personal Provision Plans for all is progressing.

As the summer term progresses, transition to the new school year in September starts to loom large.  It is both exciting and nerve racking for many of our children, especially for those moving on to secondary school.  Our Year 6 children are confident that we know them very well but have expressed concerns that the secondary teachers just 'won't get them'.  It is vital that we try to help secondary 'get them' to support our children to have a positive transition.  And what a wonderful tool one page profiles are for this.

Traditionally forms are filled out by primary and given to secondary with bland, impersonal information regarding the needs of the children.  But, at OPA, this is no more! Our Year 6 children have spent two days preparing their own one page profiles for their secondary schools.  What fascinating incites they have about themselves and others!

To create their one page profiles they took part in a range of activities, discussing their preferred learning styles and their likes/dislikes. They 'mingled to music' as they used a post-it activity to record what they like and admire about each other and discussed 'what's important to me' and 'how best to support me'.  What a lot of interesting discussion this generated amongst them! These activities produced accurate, detailed and colourful information for their one page profiles that will be invaluable to enable secondary school staff to know the children well, to understand them and put strategies into place to support their successful transition 'from the word go'.  The secondary school have received these one page profiles prior to the transition days and are equally as enthusiastic about them as we are.  They said that they give an 'in-depth insight into individual children' and will help all their secondary teachers to well and truly 'get them'!  This will definitely support a successful transition for our children as they move on to the next stage in their lives.

Next time…what about one page profiles for our new Foundation children?

What an exciting week this has been!  We have had visitors…a film crew gathering footage for the one-page profiles in schools video to show how they can be used in mainstream schools.  It has really given me an opportunity to reflect on one page profiles and the impact of these at OPA as we continue planning our journey towards personalisation. What truly powerful documents these are to support mutual understanding within our school community.

All teachers at OPA have a one-page profile which is revisited and updated at review meetings. As a new member of staff, I am developing my one-page profile and it has really demonstrated first hand, the positive effects this can have to make you feel included within the school environment. It is very self-affirming to have colleagues tell you what they like and admire about you and openly acknowledge and act on any support needed. It has reinforced in my own mind, the positive impact on wellbeing and inclusion that one-page profiles can have on members of the school community, both adults and children alike, and the importance of moving forward with this as part of our approach to personalisation.

Currently, all Year 6 children and those with statements for special educational needs have one-page profiles. Zach's person centred review was filmed for the training video; Zach really enjoyed taking part in this, a budding actor it seems!(See Jane's blog from July 2011 to learn more about Zach and his last person centred review). I simply love taking part in person centred reviews where Zach is truly at the centre of our thoughts and discussions, and where he can contribute his views effectively.  Zach's one-page profile took centre stage as we had the opportunity to revisit what we like and admire about Zach, what is important to him, and the best ways to support him. It's great to see the progress he has made, particularly with the development of his language skills, as well as update the support that Zach needs in school now.

As our strategic planning week approaches and we agree priorities for next year, my thoughts return to the PATH that Jane wrote about in her blog in January 2012. I am confident that one page profiles are a strong thread that will run along this PATH.

Next time:…More about our PATH towards personalisation.

Well, I've actually done it! I have led my first Person Centred Review with Ross, observed by Jon (our mentor) for Charlie. This was Charlie's second Person Centred Review; you can read all about his first one in Jane's blog below, written in June 2011.

And what a different experience I found it from a typical annual review.  Charlie was right at the centre of the process, right from the beginning. He brailed his own invitations, chose his snacks, drinks and music for the meeting.  He took his CCTV equipment to the meeting, a large plastic spider (!), and the room was set up specifically for him, including important details such as using his preferred black pens on the writing boards.

I spoke to Charlie about the review meeting a few days before it. He was feeling a little bit nervous that people at the meeting would not know 'things they liked about him' to share.  We talked a bit about this and he decided that he would like to bring a friend with him to the meeting, which he did.

At the meeting, Charlie was certainly at the centre! There were loads of things shared that everyone 'like and admire' about Charlie, which I was able to emphasise for him. During mingling time, Charlie put up his photographs to share his views, as others wrote on the boards and then he handed round biscuits. Lots of things were reported to be 'working well' but Charlie shared two things that were not working for him - French and some practical difficulties using his storage drawers. Alongside setting targets for areas such as secondary transition, we were also able to target these areas for Charlie; the ICT specialist teacher agreed to find good software for Charlie to support him with French and his teacher and teaching assistant agreed to help Charlie devise a better system for using his storage drawers.

At the end of the meeting, Charlie's dad did an impression of Shaggy and Scooby Doo and Charlie did an impression of the Meercats (from the well-known advertisement!), to rousing applause; they were great!

As Charlie returned to the classroom, his teacher heard him say to his friend, 'That was the best meeting ever… don't you wish you were still in there?' Doesn't that just say it all?

Next time… An update on one page profiles and Oxley Park Academy's involvement in the 'One-Page Profiles' film

I am delighted to have joined Oxley Park Academy at this really exciting time when the Academy is developing personalised approaches for all children within the school community. Taking the lead on this is a new challenge that I am really excited about.

I have worked in Milton Keynes for many years, as a teacher working with children with special needs and disabilities, an Inclusion Manager in various schools and most recently, I was employed by the Local Authority as a specialist advisory teacher for children with communication and interaction needs.

The increased emphasis on the inclusion of the views of children in their own reviews/provision has been an on-going feature of those years. One of the frustrating aspects of my work has been finding an effective way of achieving this. When I attended my first Person Centred Review at Oxley Park as a Local Authority adviser, I realised that through person centred reviews (PCR) there was an effective way of putting children at the centre of their own reviews and influencing provision for themselves. When the role of Personalisation Manager at the Academy was advertised, I applied and was offered it; I couldn't believe how lucky I was.

And so, in January, my journey began. It started with attending a two day training course in Person Centred Reviews which touched on a whole range of person centred approaches. This allowed me to learn the PCR process alongside other trainees in a supportive environment with an informal, practical approach. I now feel I have the skills and knowledge to organise and lead my first PCR with Ross, another teacher at the Academy who joined me in the training.

Ross and I are also being mentored to be trainers in PCR. We have had our first mentoring session and our mentor will be observing and feeding back on our first PCR. This will be in March and I'll let you know how this went in my next blog.

As I settle into my new role, I am really looking forward to starting to develop a pathway towards personalised provision plans for all children at the Academy revolving around the one page profiles. My vision is one where all children have their individual needs catered for with their own involvement in the best possible way. Watch this space!!

Next time I'll tell you all about my first attempt at facilitating a PCR and update you on the pathway to personalised provision plans for all.

This month we have had the privilege of hosting our first Person Centred Reviews training. HSA led two days of training for several schools in Milton Keynes and the surrounding area.

For us it was a brilliant opportunity for Lyn, our new Personalisation Manager, to spend time learning about and using the person centred planning tools which will be central to her evolving role in the Academy. Having participated in Person Centred Review's at Oxley Park in her previous role as LA Advisory Teacher for Communication and Interaction, Lyn commented that the course was invaluable in giving her time and space to learn about PCR's alongside colleagues, to a level where she feels confident to carry out a review. Lyn will be participating in a Train the Trainer programme following on from this, so that the development of a person centred approach in annual reviews in Milton Keynes develops, and is sustainable in the longer term.

We made the decision to also send one of our teachers to the 2 day training - Ross will join Lyn in taking part in the Train the Trainer mentorship programme. Our thoughts behind this lie in the belief we have, that a person centred approach needs to be a school-wide approach, not merely a vehicle by which reviews can be conducted. Ross has been an enthusiastic champion for the benefits of using person centred thinking tools in many aspects of school life, for staff and children alike. Ross will be central in helping us to continue our journey towards truly personalised learning for all our children. Follow the link to hear his views on the training - http://youtu.be/-3LpL0FpJCw

It has been great having Lyn on board at last - we have already spent time deliberating together about the longer term vision for personalisation at Oxley Park Academy. One of our priorities, in keeping with the Government SEN Green Paper recommendation for the bringing together of support for the child onto one straightforward plan, is to see every child at Oxley Park with a Personalisation Plan. Currently we seem to have a plethora of differing plans - IEP's, EAL Plans, Gifted and Talented Plans, Behaviour Plans - all of which have the same purpose, to ensure that the individual needs of every child for whom these plans apply, are met. However, a truly inclusive environment recognises that every single child at our school has individual needs and we are keen to represent this in a Personalisation Plan. For some children the plan will include language targets, for some targets to meet defined SEN, for others details of them as a learner - for all, a central common document will be their One Page Profile. Whilst Lyn, Cathy (our Principal) and I are really excited about the future, we have recognised the need for us to plan carefully in order to achieve our goals for the children - hence we are going to create a PATH together to capture our Hopes and Dreams, the Possibles and Positives, First Steps and the continuing journey.

More on this in future blogs as we set foot on the PATH ….

Next time Lyn will begin sharing her journey thus far and reflect on where her new role will take both her and the Academy.