Hopefields School

Based in Teesside, Hopefields is something of a unique proposition, serving its pupils through a holistic and therapeutic pathway.

With its students requiring a greater level of education support and development, Lexonik proved to be the ideal choice.

Lisa Allen is the Parent Support Officer and took some time out of her busy schedule to tell us more.

We love being involved with what you’re doing at Hopefields, Lisa.

It’s an incredible educational offering, delivered in a very different way.

Yes. We are a specialist independent school, providing 35 places for learners with Social Emotional Mental Health (SEMH) needs.

We offer what we refer to as a ‘knowledge-rich’ curriculum and we focus on the learning experience for the student, and on helping them be ready for the next step in life.

We have some great projects as part of our work, and do things like equine facilitated learning.

Can you tell us a little more about the students themselves, and why they may need further support with learning?

Most of our learners have an Education Health and Care Plan and are likely to have experienced unmet needs in their previous school environment.

As a result of that prior phase in their education, they’re likely to have gaps in their learning.

Given those evident gaps, was that the biggest motivator for seeking an intervention like Lexonik?

It was.

We’d heard about it as a possible reading intervention through other schools in our network.

We’re very open to seeing what resources and intervention approaches can best help learners who have different needs and varied gaps in their learning.

On hearing about Lexonik and the way it’s delivered, it felt like this was a realistic option for us.

How did you go about exploring what Lexonik could offer?

James came in to the school to explain the different programmes that Lexonik offered and we were impressed by the variety of programme approaches and the significant improvement which would be likely to be seen in a fairly short time.

James helped us to see how we could target different needs via the assessment process.

What made you decide that Lexonik was right for you?

During the initial training, James worked with the staff who we had identified as those who would be delivering Lexonik.

He helped us look at ways in which we could adapt everything from the assessment process to the activities to meet the needs of our learners.

This wasn’t based purely on their academic abilities but also SEN needs such as ASD, social anxiety, mental health and communication difficulties.

For us, it was so important that an intervention could be so adaptable.

How did implementation take place?

Staff within the school looked at our initial assessments of learners to decide who would benefit from it.

It was decided that sessions would be allocated and take place on a 1:1 basis.

The specific students were then timetabled for two sessions a week.

Assessments were carried out, sessions were targeted to individual areas where students had gaps in their learning, and this then ran for six weeks before re-assessment.

What were the first impressions of the school community

Lexonik has a positive response and uptake throughout the school.

Everyone could see the improvement – learners, teachers and our parents too.

How many staff did you train?

Four in the first year, and a further one for the following year, due to timetable changes.

So….the important bit…What results have you seen so far?

All students have improved above the chronological expectation.

In terms of reading age gains, many saw as much as 18 months and our highest was:

How have you found the ongoing support of Lexonik?

There has always been lots of online and face to face support for Lexonik from the company itself. They’ve been great in helping us make sure the programme works for what we need, and to provide anything we require in terms of training or modification.

What would you say to any school leader considering Lexonik?

The results are good, the students are engaged and the support from Lexonik was always very good.

Go for it!