We are a day school, specialising in meeting the needs of children and young people with severe or profound and multiple learning difficulties - those pupils who are showing signs of very marked developmental delay. We are a co-educational school with an age range of 3 to 16 years and the only school of its type in Haringey.
Many of the pupils have additional disabilities such as cerebral palsy, epilepsy and sensory impairment. A number of children have behavioural difficulties and some are diagnosed as being on the autistic spectrum. At present the school has places for 55 pupils.
Equal Opportunities
Our aim at William Harvey is to create an environment:
* where difference and diversity are welcomed and celebrated
* where every individual within the school community is valued
* where discrimination in any form is opposed and challenged and the person discriminated against is supported
* where a caring community is created based on fair understanding and compassionate relationships
* where we have the highest expectations of staff and pupils
* where equal access is provided for all students to the physical environment of the school and to the curriculum
* where all staff are given the opportunity and take the responsibility to contribute to continuous review of the organisation and its procedures for equality of opportunity
* where positive images of and attitudes towards our students are developed in the community in order to access their right to integrate and be part of that community
* where a partnership is established with parents/carers/community/the workplace and all who have a legitimate interest in education
* where communication systems; verbal, non-verbal and written, are established with parents/carers and the community, taking into account the range of languages within the school community
Aims of the School
At William C Harvey School we aim to provide a curriculum which will:
* enable pupils to achieve the highest standards from the setting of both realistic and challenging targets
* enable pupils to make choices and gain as much autonomy over their lives as possible
* provide pupils with the knowledge, skills and understanding appropriate to their individual stage of development
* enable pupils to form a set of moral values and to relate to other people with sensitivity
* foster imagination and creativity
* place the school and the students firmly in the mainstream of educational provision and at the centre of community life
Integration
All the classes within William Harvey are integrated, mixed ability groups, according, as far as possible to age. Sometimes pupils cross groups to access curriculum areas according to their own needs.
We believe at William Harvey that all students should have the right and opportunity to some form of positive integration with their mainstream peers. Individual and group integration begins from the early years with the mainstream Broadwater Farm Primary School and Moselle School for moderate learning difficulties on campus. Within the Secondary Department, integration takes place with Moselle School and Woodside High mainstream secondary school (formerly Whitehart Lane). The Markfield Project is also used for integration for groups throughout the school.
Integration is developed and monitored carefully to ensure that all our pupils succeed in an integrated setting and are able to interact and form relationships with their peer groups.
Curriculum
The whole school community facilitates access to the curriculum through a relevant, extensive and broadly balanced curriculum, which positively and honestly addresses even the profoundest of learning difficulties and most complex needs. An entitlement to the National Curriculum forms the basis but, in itself, cannot provide the entire breadth and balance required for the needs of our particular students. We have therefore extended the school's curriculum to include a Sensory Curriculum and experiential work at the appropriate developmental levels. Students are encouraged to follow a curriculum which allows them to make maximum progress within programmes of study either taken from Level 1 of the National Curriculum or produced by the school at an appropriate access level.
Organisation
The school is divided into two departments - Primary, and Secondary - with a Head of Department managing each one. Departmental heads coordinate staffing, curriculum, resources and links with parents/carers, and links with multi professional teams within each department and are responsible for organising annual reviews.
Primary Department
This is a lively, warm and friendly department which (as you can probably guess !) caters for the youngest children in the school. At present the children in the department are within five classes, each of which is staffed by a teacher and at least two other adults, many of which are trained nursery nurses - at present each class has an additional member of staff, reflecting the needs of the pupils. The classes have additional help at lunchtimes from SMSA's
The class teacher is able to draw upon a large multidisciplinary team in the assessment of the children's needs. This team may involve physiotherapists, speech and language, occupational and dietary therapists plus teachers from the services for the hearing and visually impaired .
Each class follows a timetable based upon the National Curriculum subjects with approaches tailored to the needs of the individual child. Subjects may well act as a vehicle for the development of skills and, where appropriate, for sensory development.
Planned programmes of integration with Broadwater Farm Primary School , Moselle school and Broadwater Farm Children's centre begin here.
Parents are welcomed and encouraged to help settle their children into school and are welcome to stay with them during the period.
Secondary Department
The secondary department consists of classes for pupils from Year 7 upwards.
It is here that we begin to consolidate those skills introduced in the early years department through the Individual Education Plan, which forms the basis of access to the National Curriculum according to your child's individual learning needs. The work is supported by the multidisciplinary approach applied throughout the school which enables each child to be given the means to access the curriculum at their own level and to progress through a sense of achievement within a positive learning experience.
The curriculum builds on previous learning and emphasises self-advocacy and working towards independence. Each class is staffed by a teacher and at least two classroom assistants. Students take part in a wide range of community activities including educational visits and work related activities.
Post 16
Until September 2007 the school had a post 16 group for their final three years at school based at at a site about a mile from the main school. These students now attend a purpose built , inclusive sixth form college situated in the east of the borough, close to Whitehart Lane mainline station.
School Facilities
The school has its own indoor heated hydrotherapy pool which pupils use at least once week.
We also have an exciting soft play room and dark room, both of which incorporate some of the latest electronic equipment to promote multi-sensory and communication development. Both these areas are accessible to all pupils via ceiling tracking and hoisting equipment. Each classroom is equipped with a computer and there are specialist rooms for art and cooking/gardening.
The grounds are part of our current development work and form an integral part of the delivery of the curriculum in many areas. The wooden soft play building is surrounded by a wild garden with raised flower beds so that all pupils can take part in digging and planting and can experience the wonderful smells, sounds and feelings associated with being out there. There is also a market garden beside the swimming pool which is used by the secondary department for growing our own vegetables and fruit which are sold within mini-enterprises.
The school also owns two, tail-lift minibuses which can be used for day visits or for longer school journeys.
Home School Partnership
This is a crucial area for both parents/carers and for the school in working with your children. as we rarely see each other "at the school gates" as in mainstream schools, over the years systems have been set up to make sure that we all know exactly what is happening with the children both at home and at school in order to make sure that they have the best education possible. The teacher with responsibility for parental partnership coordinates all the parents' groups and is responsible for organising the programme for the coffee mornings. They are the person to go to first if you have any queries around parental links.
General Information
Pupils attend school for 190 days a year, divided into three terms. The dates for each year are sent to parents as soon as we have them. The school day is from 9.00 a.m. until 3.15 p.m.. Lunch starts at 12.00 and afternoon school starts at 1.30 p.m..
Individual children's timetables, class timetables and individual targets are sent to you by your child's teacher at the beginning of each term.
