At Barrow Hedges Primary School we are proud that everyone contributes greatly to the implementation of Inclusion.  There are some key players in this, presented below:

Meet Mrs Michelle Rondeau– Inclusion Leader and Assistant Headteacher

Mrs Rondeau joined Barrow Hedges in September 2020 from another Cirrus Trust School, where she had been the Assistant Headteacher (SENCO and Pupil Premium Lead). Joining Barrow Hedges Primary School during a pandemic was an exciting and challenging time, but now as things settle down, she continues to be excited and proud to be leading inclusion at our school. In 2019, she completed a Masters in Education and in 2020 she completed the National Award for Special Education Needs Coordinators. In addition to working with all our children, with a high level of focus on our children with additional needs, she is also one of our designated safeguarding leads, supporting to keep all of our children safe in our school community. Mrs Rondeau feels extremely lucky to be supported by an experienced and dedicated inclusion team, who continuously support each other and the school community every day.

Meet Miss Abi Swinfield – English as an Additional Language Leader

One of Miss A Swinfield's responsibilities at the school is to lead on English as an Additional Language (EAL).  She has been deployed to this role since September 2020 and works very hard to ensure that pupils who have English as an Additional Language are provided with support where necessary.  Miss Swinfield is very passionate about this role.  See EAL section of website for further information.

Meet Ms Lucy Gardiner – Lead TA - Family Support Worker & ELSA

Ms Gardiner has worked at Barrow Hedges Primary School for over seven years and has fulfilled a number of different roles including Nursery Nurse, Classroom Assistant and 1:1 Learning Support Assistant.  She has previously been trained in a number of specialist support strategies such as Maketon and Family Support.  In September 2015, the Senior Leadership Team identified Ms Gardiner as having great skills in the area of Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities, Inclusion and Family Support, and following an application process, changed her role to Senior Teaching Assistant for Inclusion where she now offers great support to many pupils and families.

Meet Mrs Jo Cloves – Senior Teaching Assistant for Emotional Literacy Support (ELSA)

Barrow Hedges Primary School is very lucky to have a wonderful ELSA working at the school.  Mrs Cloves joined the school in 2015 and has contributed greatly to the social, emotional and behavioural development of many of our pupils.  She works across Early Years and Key Stage One (Nursery to Year 2) for 20 hours per week. Mrs Cloves have completed specific training relating to Emotional Literacy Support which is run by Sutton Local Authority Educational Psychologists.

Meet Ms Allyson Critchley – Specialist Teaching Assistant for Inclusion

Ms Critchley has worked at Barrow Hedges Primary School since 2010. In September 2015 she began working in her current role, providing high quality interventions to targeted groups of pupils.  Mrs Critchley has a Level 5 Diploma in Dyslexia and works hard to provide support to groups of pupils who require support with Maths or English.

Meet Mrs Rogers Rogers – Pupil Premium Teacher Mentor

Mrs Rogers has worked at the school for many years and currently spends 2/3 of her timetable (1.5 days) working with Year 5 and Year 6 pupils, supporting their progress in Writing and Maths, and now the remaining 1/3 of her time working directly with children who are eligible for Pupil Premium, providing mentoring, Pre Teach and much else besides.

Meet Miss Rebekah Swinfield is the leader for Healthy Schools, Mental Health and Wellbeing

At Barrow Hedges, Mental Health and Wellbeing is of paramount importance. In the previous academic year, Mental Health and Wellbeing was a key focus for development, as an integral part of being a Healthy School. This has become even more essential due to the effects of COVID-19, including the National Lockdown and subsequent school closures.

In December 2019, we received our Healthy Schools Silver Award for our work towards supporting children’s mental health and wellbeing. We are currently working towards our Gold award which we hope to achieve by the end of this academic year. Additionally, we, alongside other schools within the trust, are working towards the School Mental Health Award from the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools.

At Barrow Hedges, we are committed to ensuring our pupils feel happy and safe in school through education on healthy lifestyle choices and activities which raise awareness of mental health. By raising awareness of mental health and wellbeing as well as physical health, our pupils gain the motivation, confidence and self-respect to make healthy life choices. Additionally, the benefits go beyond health - we know that when children are healthy and happy at school, they can and will achieve more.

If you would like more information, you can visit the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools website by clicking  here, or alternatively speak to Miss Swinfield about our current areas of focus.