EDITOR
Earlier this year, I joined President, Whetu Cormick, on a trip to the South Island. This trip had one specific purpose – to visit two Residential Schools, Halswell in Christchurch and Salisbury in Nelson. Whetu wanted to experience first hand the programmes in action at these schools. He wanted to meet the residents, their teachers and principals and their Boards of Trustees. It was important to get a clear picture of the contribution that these schools make to the overall network of schooling provision in New Zealand. It was not long before we realised the enormity of the challenges facing some of the young residents both socially and emotionally, as well as educationally. We also quickly recognised the exceptional levels of expertise that the teachers and support staff in these schools call on every hour of every day as they go about the work of educating these exceedingly vulnerable young New Zealanders. The third residential school, which shares a Governance Board with Halswell, is Westbridge in West Auckland. There are just ten
boys enrolled at the school which could easily take thirty-two, according to Principal, David Bagwell. And it’s not that there isn’t demand for those places. Westbridge has inquiries every day from parents wanting to place their young children at the school. As Salisbury and Halswell school principals had earlier reported, qualifying for the Intensive Wrap Around Service (IWS) is the greatest barrier. For a start only so many students can qualify for IWS funding, so very few new students can be considered each year. Further barriers can come from the opinions of experts like psychologists, some of whom are ambivalent about residential schools or take a philosophical position that all young people should be included in mainstream schooling. Parents would welcome an alternative pathway into these residential schools, so that more very challenged youngsters could benefit from the outstanding education on offer. Associate Minister Tracey Martin, who has long championed the work of residential schools and alternative education, gives parents hope that access to residential education will be made
Achieving their Gold certificates is a milestone for the boys to celebrate
Principal David Bagwell
easier in the future. Minister Martin’s mantra is that every child should have access to whatever learning support they need to succeed. That includes the specialist support that residential schools provide. Principal, David Bagwell, is clear about the severity of his students’ behavioural challenges. Westbridge is the only school in the country dedicated to working with year three – ten students who have severe behaviour, social, emotional and learning needs. They provide 24/7 care. The needs stem from a variety of causes including severe trauma and family violence. It is difficult to imagine how any of these young people could be integrated into mainstream schooling, without first experiencing the high-level intense training that the Westbridge teachers and support staff provide. ‘It can take at least twelve to eighteen months for some of
our students to build trust and form healthy relationships, to understand their feelings and recognise what triggers negative and violent reactions,’ he said. The work of the highly specialised teachers at Westbridge does not stop with the students. It extends also to their families and their eventual mainstream school. ‘Our liaison teacher works with the families while the children are with us, so that when these children do return home, the routines and practices that have proven successful here can continue at home,’ he said. ‘She also undertakes assessment and planning of family goals and provides resources to help support new learning in the home,’ he said. We meet the Liaison Teacher, Barbara Nelson, who emphasises the importance of the family’s commitment to the Westbridge programme, so that there is continuity for the student. ‘The
Principal David Bagwell keeps his students’ hands colourfully displayed in his office
Pictorial image of the work at Westbridge to take the students on a journey of change
Barbara Nelson, Liaison Teacher, Westbridge
changes we introduce at school, require practise at home to be and these are expressed in a range of social, emotional and maintained,’ she said. ‘We want our students to have positive educational learning activities involving themselves, their peers, relationships with their families and the wider community, so staff, property, the environment and their academic work. that they can have successful future lives,’ she said. The school runs a band levels programme, based on the Parents may also request training in positive parenting and in Positive Behaviour for Learning framework. There are six these cases, a special training programme for the parents will be levels, from Green to Gold, each with its own goals. Goals included in the residential plan for the student. include, for example, ‘Doing what the teacher tells me straight ‘Our positive parenting programme is a helpful addition away’; ‘Communicating pleasantly and politely’; ‘Doing for those who have not had my best and asking for help’; great role models of parenting ‘Keeping my hands and feet themselves,’ says Barbara, to myself ’; ‘Joining in with ‘and this can be an important others’; ‘Having pleasant and ingredient for the success of polite conversations with our students,’ she said. my peers’; ‘Avoiding trouble As students gets closer and using s elf-cont rol’; to transitioning to their ‘Maintaining behaviours for mainstream school, Barbara an ever-increasing length of takes them on a school visit. time’. At the lowest Green level, Visits may be repeated over students will have achieved the time, gradually integrating the goal after ten days of 80 per student into the new school’s cent in a row; at the highest life and work. Gold level, students will have ‘It has to be a gradual achieved the goal after 30 days process,’ says Barbara, ‘We of 97 per cent in a row. can’t rush it or re-integration The day we visit, it is Fun activities at Westbridge will fail. We have to be sure prize-giving, a very special that our students have the right supports in place at their new celebration of the children’s band levels achievements. Parents school, including peer support, or we risk integration failing,’ and family members join the staff as certificates are awarded to she said. those who have satisfied the various levels of achievement in The school’s three key competencies of responsibility, respect these key competencies. Some are also awarded vouchers for and safety are central to the students’ learning at Westbridge extra special achievements.
Another proud moment to smile about
David tells us that the band levels have proven a successful system for behaviour change at the school. The number of youngsters collecting certificates and vouchers was a clear demonstration that the students take this system very seriously. The intention is that the children will eventually be re-integrated into the mainstream and 85 per cent do transition successfully back into their local schools. ‘It would be so much better if we were not seen as the last resort after all else has failed,’ says David. ‘Students have often endured years of going nowhere before they can even be considered for residential care,’ he said. ‘By the time we get them they are completely disengaged and failure is well ingrained.’ David was also critical of the policy to remove ‘safe’ rooms. ‘We are dealing with such high needs,’ he said, ‘and a safe room is an essential tool for us.’
All of David’s staff are trained in how to restrain students safely but the ‘safe’ room would be so much more effective for both students and staff. Staff members are also trained in de-escalation techniques and well experienced in using them. However, to keep everyone safe they need the full compliment of tools at their disposal. It is unhelpful when these are taken away. Despite the barriers, David is optimistic about the future, especially now that Minister Martin is in Government. He is optimistic that there will be alternative pathways to access his school in the future and they will be able to enrol their full quota of students. The needs are there and Westbridge, along with Halswell and Salisbury are more than capable of meeting these needs. ‘Investing early in the kind of specialist training we can offer, will save millions of dollars for the country in the long run,’ he says.
Students use motivating stories to learn resilience
Each residential cottage has eight students