Our Staff

Staff at Ivy Lane School

Within Ivy Lane School, staff including our Therapeutic Services Team, pride themselves on offering a highly professional service. The members of the Therapeutic Services Team work together with the individual towards reaching their full potential, alongside those who are important to them. The Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) aims to enable all staff to understand and meet the needs of the people we support, helping them stay safe and calm enough in the short term to learn the skills that will improve their well-being and engagement in the long term.

Recruitment and training

The recruitment process of Hesley Group is thorough and before joining us at Ivy Lane School people’s employment histories are thoroughly checked, references taken up and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks carried out.

We are dedicated to improving the performance and self-esteem of our staff in a way that directly improves the quality of everybody who attends a Hesley Group service. To this end the Workforce Development Department within Hesley Group provides and commissions a comprehensive programme of workforce development activities. To do this, a blended learning approach is used including delivery in the classroom for most programmes, e-learning where needed, on the job coaching and mentoring, apprenticeships, qualifications both vocational, academic and professional, accredited courses, open learning and further Continuous Professional Development (CPD).

All new staff are required to attend and complete a relevant corporate and service-specific induction programme to their role. These are aimed at meeting national legislation and standards such as the Teaching Assistant Level 3 qualification.

Once the above is complete we move on to personal development programmes (CPD) including supervision and ongoing appraisal which are key parts that further develop staff knowledge, skills and motivation in order to achieve and maintain a high quality of service for the people we support.

Staff come from a wide range of backgrounds and bring a wealth of specialist autism, learning disability, training, education and other experience to Ivy Lane School.

A highly experienced and specialist multi-agency team, comprising of clinicians, managerial and supporting staff, together with families, work to optimise the provision of individualised care and therapeutic interventions.

We have a firm belief in the ‘Power of Yet’ and this is at the heart of the service offered at Ivy Lane School. Young people are supported by a range of staff, including:

• Class Teachers, Teaching Assistants, Classroom Support Assistants and senior leaders who ensure that teaching and learning is effective;
• A Facilities Manager and School Administrator who each lead teams of core and administration staff that in turn contribute to the smooth running of the school

Safeguarding

As providers of care to young people with disabilities we have a duty to ensure that our safeguarding processes are robust and comprehensive. This includes ensuring that: young people are listened to and concerns acted upon; adhering to the guidance of keeping children safe in education; our staff teams are trained and competent in supporting young people; our management and reporting systems meet the standards required by law and are kept under review and up to date with current guidance.