A message from the Headteacher
It is a pleasure to welcome you to Unity College.
We offer educational provision for children in care homes within the Cross Regional Project in Buckinghamshire, Oxford, Milton Keynes and Hertfordshire aged between 11 years to 19 years.
All the children that attend the school are Looked After Children, with space for up to 36 students on-site. Unity College is committed to providing a broad and ambitious curriculum that offers students the chance to access learning that will benefit them beyond the school.
Unity College supports young people with social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) needs, which can include additional needs such as autism spectrum conditions (ASC), social communication difficulties, and associated learning difficulties. Some children have EHCP’s, within the school, but not all children.
Our educational curriculum provides three pathways, depending on needs:
Pathway 1 – The Formal Curriculum offers National Curriculum learning from specialist teachers and qualifications that include Functional Skills, BTEC, Trinty Awards, ELC, Duke of Edinburgh, and GCSE options. This academic pathway focuses on preparing students for age-appropriate outcomes. Students will access a small amount of the Equals Curriculum to enable them to fill any developmental gaps missed in early/younger years focused on life skills and Preparation for Adulthood. The units are selected based on the individual needs of the class and is bespoke across the school.
Pathway 2 – The Semi Formal pathway, uses the thematic approach of the Equals Curriculum that focusses on meeting the academic needs of pupils that are working consistently and over time significantly below age-related expectations. This curriculum is delivered primarily at our Roots site and offers a nurturing environment that has a strong focus of learning behaviours and builds on missed learning.
The students have an opportunity to interchange between pathways based on progress and need, making the curriculum bespoke for all our learners. We have an inclusive ethos for which students can join us throughout the school year and may often have experienced periods of disrupted learning or time out of school. We adapt our teaching and offer interventions to support the needs of our pupils with universal, targeted and individualised approaches that allow them to thrive, both academically and socially.
The rationale to this curriculum is designed from the following three questions and offers opportunity for the children to fill missing gaps based on their individual trauma experiences. The intent being that they will be able to live their best possible life with all their entitled foundations of learning to enable success:
1. Can developmental trauma impact early learning / developmental milestones?
2. Can mental health difficulties / trauma being triggered lead to a regression in abilities?
3. Can a young person who has experienced developmental trauma present as more able than they are?
We support emotional development by utilising a Positive Behaviour Approach, PACE and Zones of Regulation. The approaches, teamed with our interventions, create a framework in which the students within Unity College develop and thrive.
Alongside this our Values incorporate the following key headings “Unique, Nurturing, Inspire, Tolerance and Your route to a fulfilling future” and are embedded in the practice, ethos and outcomes in school to enhance their learning opportunities.
Our school governing body, led by our Chair of Governors, is a strong and supportive team who take an active interest in all aspects of the school and pupil progression.
Unity College
