About Us - The Red Door School

Roll No. 20381D

Monkstown Grove, Monkstown Avenue, Monkstown, Co. Dublin.

The Red Door School

DIY

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Ethos & Philosophy of The Red Door School

The Red Door School seeks to provide child-centred, evidence based and autism specific education to our students.

We endeavour to work enthusiastically, warmly and collaboratively with parents, professionals, school staff and the local community to provide the pro-active and positive support that will empower our students reach their potential, and feel secure, confident and welcome in their school.

We seek to create an environment where each member of our school community feels valued and supported, and where our students, in particular, are not only respected but celebrated.

Mission Statement

We approach the work that we do with positivity. We appreciate that each student is an individual, with their own strengths, needs and learning style, but also recognise the evidence-based strategies that tend to work the best for learners on the spectrum. We keep ourselves abreast of developments in autism-education, and work with a view to the future- we want our students to develop independence and life skills that will increase their autonomy and happiness long after their time with us has come to an end.

We are dedicated to the educational and personal development of our student body, and approach the teaching and learning with clarity, consistency and above all empathy. We honour the pupils’ communication, and recognise the importance of a step-by-step approach, where small achievements are celebrated along the way, and the students feel that their school is not only a place to learn, but a positive social environment, where who they are and how they negotiate the world around them is valued.

We support each other, as a community and ensure that above all, we are listening to what they are communicating. That they feel heard and valued.

For it is in that space, of warmth and understanding that we can best support them to thrive.

School Vision

At the Red Door School we hold the following statements to be fundamental to our approach to providing…

· We are - Child-centred- Our students are at the forefront of everything that we do. We are caring, fair and committed to helping them achieve their full potential.

· We are - Consistent- We adopt autism-specific, evidence based approaches, tailored to the individual students’ strengths and needs.

· We – Collaborate - we work with all members of the class team, outside professionals, parents and most importantly the students themselves to ensure we’re all working together to achieve the best possible outcome for each child.

· We - Communicate- We take the time to listen, creating a space within the school where our students’ communication, is encouraged and respected.

· We – Celebrate - we celebrate the achievements, small and big, on the way to meeting our learning goals, and take pride in our students’ educational journey.

Curriculum:

The Red Door School use an evidence based approach to the teaching and learning of pupils with ASD. Each child will have an Individual Education Plan which will be specific to their needs. Our class teachers use the NCCA national curriculum and the NCCA curriculum for children with General Learning Difficulties when planning for your child’s academic goals. We also use Aistear in our infant and younger classes.

Our curriculum is presented in six areas, some of which are further subdivided into subjects. These are:

Communication & Language: Communication, Reading and Writing
Mathematics
Social, environmental and scientific education (SESE): history, geography and science
Arts education: visual arts, music and drama
Physical education
Social, personal and health education (SPHE)

Inclusion

The Red Door School aim to fully support the child to live to their full potential and to be an active participant in their own education. Our focus is on lifelong education and enabling the participant to live a fully inclusive life within their community . We recognise that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to inclusion and there are many methods to creating an inclusive culture within our school community. Some of the ways we foster inclusion at The Red Door School are as follows:

Visits within the local community, shops, library, post office.
Combined activities with local schools
Visitation placements – whereby a pupil from our school may attend another school as a guest for some period of the school day – please see visitation policy for more details.

The Red Door School Board of Management

Chairperson/Patron Nominee Fiona Mc Loughlin Patron Rep Joe Healy

Community Nominee Community Nominee Evin Delaney

Principal Conan Byrne Parent Nominee Laura Whitty

Staff Nominee Paul Kelly Parent Nominee Stephen Hanley

Staff Roles and Qualifications

The Board of Management of The Red Door School complies with all recruitment procedures for staff as outlined by the Department of Education and Skills. All personnel employed by the school or engaged on by the school in placements are fully Garda Vetted. References for all personnel are checked in advance of any position being offered by the school. Comprehensive in-house training is offered to all staff of The Red Door School.

Principal

Is responsible for the day-to-day management of the school, including guidance and direction of the teachers and other staff of the school, and is accountable to the Board of Management
provides leadership to the teachers and other staff and the students of the school,
is responsible, together with the board, parents of students and the teachers, for the creation in the school of an environment which is supportive of learning among the students and which promotes the professional development of the teachers,
encourages the involvement of parents of students in the school in the education of those students and in the achievement of the objectives of the school

Clinical Supervisor

Our Clinical Supervisor is a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst and is engaged on a consultative basis to oversee the implementation of clinical supports for our pupils. She works collaboratively with the principal and class teachers to provide training and support in evidence based practice. The Clinical Supervisor also provides in-house support and training to all staff in the implementation of School Wide Positive Behaviour Support.

Teaching staff:

All class teachers are fully recognized with the Teaching Council and qualified to teach in a Special School Setting. The Class Teacher is responsible for the co-ordination of each pupils Individial Education Plan in addition to planning and preparation for group actvites in line with the National Curriculum. The Class Teacher is Responsible for the health safety and welfare of all pupils in his/her class and works collaboratively with our Clinical Director or members of each child’s clinical support team to support the child’s education and development.

Special Needs Assistants/Tutors

All tutors at The Red Door School receive extensive in-house training as part of their training and induction. Their role is to ensure the pupils personal care needs are being met while also providing additional support to enable the child to participate to their fullest potential in educational activities. Tutors provide additional individual instruction under the guidance of the class teacher and collect academic and behavioural data to assist the class teacher and clinical director in assessing and monitoring each child’s progress.

Bus Escorts

The role of the bus escort is to safely supervise the pupils availing of school transport on their journey to and from school. Each escort receives in house training as part of their induction to the school. Additional training required to meet the needs of any individual child on a bus route is offered if the need arises.

School Secretary

The school have a part-time secretary. The Secretary’s role is to provide secretarial and administration services to the school under the direction of the Principal.

Additional Services/Clinical Supports

The school has no direct connection with any individual clinical support service for additional services such as Occupational Therapy, Psychology or Speech and Language Therapy, we do however work closely with any clinical provider each child is assigned to and facilitate visits and multidisciplinary meetings with the class teacher where possible.

Fundraising

As a school community, we place great emphasis on working together to raise vital funds for the running of the school. This includes providing for clinical services of behavioural support, educational resources and equipment to support our pupils needs, external services from visiting teachers such as PE.

Examples of activities that have taken place in the past and are due to continue include: