DSP (Designated Specialist Provision)
Our dedicated DSP base classrooms are replicated across both sites and cater for a full-time curriculum with familiar staff for those students requiring a higher level of support.
Our KS3 DSP is located on Fosse campus, enabling opportunities for inclusion in mainstream lessons as appropriate for individual students, whilst still providing the security of the DSP environment for as long as is required. This is replicated in our KS4 DSP, which again provides a purpose built environment with the advantage of easy access to the wider life of the school and GCSE options.
Our timetable is focused on communication enrichment, with a slightly higher proportion of the timetable dedicated to English and Literacy, alongside Maths, Science, PSHE, Humanities, PE, IT and Arts/Textiles. At Key Stage 4, all students are entered for GCSEs in English Language and Literature, Maths and dual award Science, all of which are taught in the DSP base classrooms, and those students capable of accessing lessons in the mainstream building are strongly encouraged to work to towards two or three additional GCSE-level (or equivalent) qualifications in Options subjects, such as Statistics, Food and Nutrition, Triple Award Science, History, Art, and Drama.
We have dedicated calm rooms for de-escalation and recovery in times of crisis, and those students who would find the hustle and bustle of a large and busy playground too much to cope with also have access to a separate, quieter outdoor space for breaktimes and lunchtimes. Students are encouraged to get fresh air at break times and to socialise with their peers across the year groups within the DSP setting; however, those who integrate into mainstream lessons and have opportunities to make friends outside the DSP class are free to mix with their same-age peers at breaktimes and lunchtimes on the wider campus as they wish.