INTRODUCTION ST CATHERINE S SCHOOL AND SIXTH FORM CENTRE OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY POLICY St Catherine s School and Sixth Form Centre is a residential school providing intensive integrated programmes of care, education, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy for young people with specific communication disorders. Occupational therapists work in an educational / vocational / care environment as part of a multi-disciplinary team. The main purpose of the work of the therapists is to address the special needs of an identified population of young people with sensory integration dysfunction, motor coordination and visuo-motor difficulties. Rationale Occupational therapy is a necessary part of the educational process at St Catherine s in ensuring that the students are supported in accessing the curriculum, and their development of strategies required for life skills and personal development towards independence. Occupational therapists work in close collaboration with all staff in the school. Students entering the school may have well documented movement disorders which are of such severity that they seriously affect their ability to function effectively in ordinary situations and to access the National Curriculum without some level of modification. The Sixth Form Centre exists to provide the students with an interim period of continued concentration on improving key skills. Students are supported by an individual occupational therapy programme. The aim is for students to make sufficient educational and functional progress in order to be successful in any future full-time vocational training within their home area. Caseloads The caseload of the occupational therapist is dictated by the number of students with an identified need for assessment and intervention. The occupational therapist can be supported by assistants to deliver treatment programmes. Aims The aims of occupational therapy in this setting are as follows: to establish and raise sensory, motor and visual perceptual competence and independence in activities of daily living, through programmes of therapy which address the specific needs of the student; to enable students to maximise their capacity for learning by providing support in the classroom, or in individual or small group work to enable each student to access the education curriculum more effectively throughout the school; to provide programmes which underpin written language and literacy skills; Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 1
to provide students with strategies which will enable them to manage residual disabilities or difficulties particularly as they move through the school into the wider community and adulthood; to provide initial assessment, on-going review and evaluation of each student s levels of ability and disability and report as required for inclusion in the LA s statutory documents; to provide support for students moving through integration in local schools and colleges and advice for teaching staff working with our students in those settings; to provide advisory support for students moving back to mainstream schools or colleges in their home areas; to develop independence in activities of daily living. Intervention All students of the school are under the professional care of the occupational therapy staff. The occupational therapist will be responsible for the following for the individual student: Identifying: - individual areas of strength and weakness through formal and informal assessment of the students needs in a variety of situations; - assessments will be carried out by a qualified occupational therapist; - new students with a statement/ehcp need for OT will be assessed in the 1 st term and formal requests via annual review will be assessed within 2 terms; - aims and targets for the student. Planning: appropriate programmes of therapy; direction of OTAs with regard to planning therapy; joint collaboration with teachers, speech and language therapists and care staff; joint aims as part of liaison meetings with education and care staff when appropriate; direct involvement of students in setting goals and evaluating success; involvement of caregivers and families in setting and achieving objectives. Implementing: Individual therapy programmes. These are designed to meet the needs of the individual student. They may be delivered by a qualified OT or an assistant under direction. The qualified OT will carry out reviews and update programmes as necessary. As the students move through school and particularly those in the sixth form centre, the main emphasis of OT is to address the implications of difficulties with motor, sensory and perceptual skills on activities of daily living and accessing the wider community. It includes more practical skills training, finding effective strategies and taking on greater responsibility for persisting areas of difficulty. Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 2
Classroom support is designed: to facilitate learning by providing carryover from 1:1 sessions into the classroom environment, according to students specific sensory, motor and perceptual difficulties; to ensure the use of, with assistance, specific equipment and tools to further develop students organisation skills; to facilitate active participation in practical tasks through encouragement or a modified / compensatory approach. Therapy groups These are designed to meet the needs of several students and can be an effective and efficient way of delivering therapy programmes. Students with similar needs are selected and either do activities alongside each other or as paired work where they are required to work together to complete the task. Where appropriate, larger groups sessions may be carried to meet specific skills. Reporting: initial assessment report; contemporaneous note writing as a progress record; reassessment reports two years post initial assessment and at transition periods (year 9 and year 10 and sixth form year 1); any interim reports, as required; statutory annual review reports based on progress against aims and providing any recommendations to support areas of difficulty; provision of information for part 2 and part 3 of SEN statements, and for the relevant parts of EHCPs, for OT to be included into these documents; data collection with regard to progress made by students. Maintaining: formal and informal contact with other staff; formal and informal contact with parents; formal and informal contact with home Occupational Therapist / LA; formal and informal contact with other professionals. Attending: liaison meetings (termly); IEP meetings; annual review meetings as appropriate; joint remediation/planning meetings as required; any other relevant meetings as required. Outcomes for students Formal and informal measures are used to determine outcomes for students. Data is analysed regularly and this information is used to set individual, group and department goals. Where possible external professional systems are used against which progress of students is measured. In the absence of such systems, therapists liaise with other peer group schools to establish and develop best practice. Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 3
Clinical accountability As professionals, occupational therapists accept clinical accountability for the students on their caseload, as detailed above. All occupational therapists working at St Catherine s will have established their professional competence from their initial education and qualification, ensuing clinical expertise and continuation of in-service training. Occupational therapists have the responsibility to maintain their standards of competence through continuing professional development and training, and awareness of clinical advances. All occupational therapists at St Catherine s are required to be registered by the Health Professionals Council (HPC) and have membership of British Association of Occupational Therapists (BAOT). Membership of any specialist sections such as Children, Young People and Families (CYPF) is desirable. While the HPC is the registering body for the profession in the UK, the College of Occupational Therapists (COT) advises on professional issues. The school is a separate body with its own rules and responsibilities for the provision of education to its students, and has a duty of care for them. Occupational therapy assistants are also required by the school to be associate members of the College of Occupational Therapists. Occupational therapists at St Catherine s should be aware of the policies of the school as a whole, of the clinical policy of the Occupational Therapy department and of the details of their own job description. Occupational therapists are accountable to the Principal through the Head of Therapy and the Head of the Sixth Form Centre. Legal responsibility Occupational therapists at St Catherine s are responsible to the school for the safety and well being of the students committed to their care. Occupational therapists are working within the scope of their employment and the employer will, in normal circumstances, support them should there be litigation. Occupational therapists have a duty of care to the student and would be negligent when there is a breach of that duty which results in harm or damage to that student. They are accountable to the school for any action or process they are authorised to carry out or, being so authorised, fail to carry out. Occupational therapists remain at all times responsible for their own acts and omissions. Occupational therapists are expected to take appropriate precautions to ensure reasonable care of the students in all circumstances. Within the multi-disciplinary setting of St Catherine s occupational therapists must be aware of the importance of exchange of information with colleagues and their mutual agreement on areas of responsibility in particular situations (e.g. school trips). Occupational therapists should be alert to their own responsibilities at these times. Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 4
As registered members of HPC and/or BAOT all occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants at St Catherine s have professional indemnity insurance to cover claims arising from alleged professional negligence or misconduct. Liaison with other professionals It is essential that the occupational therapists working in St Catherine s acknowledge their role as members of the multi-disciplinary team involved in the students education. Therapists are required to work in close collaboration with all other members of the multidisciplinary team, sharing skills and roles in order to provide the most effective learning environment for the student. The aim is that shared knowledge, expertise and information will ensure holistic and co-ordinated management of the students speech and language disability and associated sensory, motor and perceptual difficulties. It is essential that occupational therapy skills and the specialist teaching approaches used at St Catherine s are pooled in order that there is accurate assessment, relevant planning and effective programme implementation, to meet the needs of the students. Occupational therapists at St Catherine s work within an educational setting and are working towards a collaborative model of practice. Continuing education and staff development St Catherine s School has a clear policy setting out the individual s and management s responsibilities for ensuring professional development. All occupational therapists are required through continuing education to have: a knowledge of changes in general health, education and social care policy; a knowledge of new developments within the profession, both specific to therapy delivery at St Catherine s and regarding clinical practice in general.. Appraisal Appraisal at St Catherine s aims to provide professional and personal continuous development programmes for occupational therapy staff. The Head of Therapy appraises occupational therapy staff annually. This process is important for both the personal professional development of the individual and to promote the effective management of training issues within the school as a whole. Supervision Good professional supervision is recognised as important to the provision of an effective occupational therapy service. Supervision provides the opportunity for each occupational therapist to discuss work regularly with an experienced and qualified peer. The opportunity to do this on the Island is rare and therefore links with mainland occupational therapists in special education are encouraged as a means of obtaining some level of professional support. Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 5
In house supervision is also provided by more experienced occupational therapist to less experienced staff depending on job banding. Supervision is provided by occupational therapists to occupational therapy assistants on a regular basis to ensure continued good practice when working with students and to ensure their continued professional development. Resources Occupational therapists at St Catherine s have access to equipment and test materials that can be appropriately used with the full range of students in the school. Each occupational therapist is responsible for ensuring that the equipment that is used is safe, complete and up to date. The Head Speech and Language Therapist and the Head of the Sixth Form Centre hold a supplies budget. Access to professional information and resources, to enable staff to maintain their awareness and access to developments in occupational therapy and education, is available through the school s subscription to journals and relevant magazines. The school is maintaining and developing a professional library and provides access for staff to electronic mail and World Wide Web facilities. Accommodation Occupational therapy has accommodation that includes an office, a treatment room suitable for suspended equipment and two other therapy rooms. These are suitable for individual therapy sessions, paired work and test administration. This accommodation will be provided with necessary tools and equipment required for the ongoing assessment and remediation of individual students. There is also access to the school hall for movement programmes and kitchens / food technology rooms and a small gym for practical sessions. Occupational therapy staff are responsible for ensuring that accommodation is safe and accessible. Health and safety The school s Health and Safety Policy will be adhered to at all times during occupational therapy activities. In addition Occupational therapy staff will ensure safe working by applying procedures as set out in the Occupational Therapy Safety Policy. Individual student and activity risk assessments are also adhered to. Every Child Matters Although this initiative is no longer current, the principles are still relevant and are fundamental to Occupational Therapy. They will be taken into account throughout occupational therapy sessions and within the programs: Being healthy; Staying safe; Enjoying and achieving; Making a positive contribution; Achieving economic wellbeing. Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 6
Diversity and equality Therapists will create opportunities for the improvement of each student s physical and visual perceptual skills, regardless of age, ability, gender, culture and sexuality. We live in a multicultural society and therefore therapy should reflect this. We encourage all students to appreciate that learning about other cultures enhances our own. Occupational Therapy forms an important and integral part of the St Catherine s work with students. Therefore, this document should be read alongside occupational therapy job descriptions and other school and OT policy documents. Monitored by Governors Apr 2013 Reviewed Sep 2012 / Jun 2013 / Oct 2015 Resources/Policies/Occupational Therapy Policy Oct 2015 Page 7