Making the move from mainstream to alternative provision

This is the first post of what I hope will become a series of posts over the next year as I move from mainstream into alternative provision.

Alterative provision in this sense is being used as an umbrella term to encompass a number of education providers that are not mainstream schools, such as; PRUs, AP Free Schools and AP Academies. In this instance I am moving from a secondary comprehensive. There I was a head of year and humanities teacher. I am moving to a pupil referral unit (PRU) where I will take on a SLT position as lead teacher.

I am lucky to be supported in this transition by The Difference. As one of the 2021 cohort of difference leaders I will have access to training, tutor support and compassion focussed coaching. Most importantly I am part of a cohort of like minded fellow difference leaders to share the journey from mainstream to alternative provision with.

What am I expecting to be different?

The number of students is significantly fewer than I am used to. Pupil referral units typically serve 50-100 pupils.

With smaller numbers comes higher teacher-pupil ratios of around 1:7. Although the exact ratio will depend on the setting.  Those classes of 30/32 will be a distant memory and there will be more time to work with individual students.

You are working with vulnerable pupils. Therefore, you will spend more time working with other professionals such as social workers, youth offending teams, mental health practitioners, counsellors and others. This is something I really enjoyed as a head of year so I am looking forward to continuing.

Why have I decided to make this move?

As a head of year for a number of years I have always found supporting the most vulnerable students. What surprised me is that the most vulnerable students are also the most likely to find themselves excluded from school in one form or another. I was becoming increasingly frustrated with seeing students excluded from school who quite obviously had unmet social and emotional needs and often hidden learning difficulties.

Alternative provision holds some absolutely amazing practice and expertise in how to work with some of these students. I wanted to be part of a team that could make a real difference for vulnerable young people. I also wanted to see what these amazing alternative provision practitioners do and to learn from them.