Dynamis recently delivered a series of trainings for a special needs school in London which looks after children in primary and secondary education who are living with significant learning disabilities.
After a pre-training site visit to discuss the training needs and the teaching environment with both the Assistant Head and the Executive Head Teacher — including a walk-around to see the teachers and TAs in practice — Dynamis was tasked with designing an appropriate training programme.
This involved looking at the appropriate Positive Handling content and formats through which the relevant special needs learning and skills development could be promoted.
A number of engagements across multiple days was planned. Groups of staff — from Primary, from Secondary, from the TA team and the classroom teacher team — were engaged in appropriate levels of content and practice. The training was designed to fit the school environment, the culture of learning, and specifically the emphasis the school has on finding early-stage interventions which are non-physical when a special needs child becomes distressed or overstimulated.
Our training content involved, amongst other key topics:
The training was delivered using our highly refined ‘blended’ format in the most part, however full day “theory and practice” sessions were also included for those members of the special needs teams who it was decided would benefit most from immersion in the topic.
📊 Blended approach: The school used a mix of twilight online sessions and full-day immersive training — matching staff roles with the right depth of learning, so everyone got appropriate input without disrupting the school day.
Feedback has been very positive, as the following considered thoughts from just one special needs educator demonstrate:
Great mix of practical and theoretical learning. Focus on spotting first signs of possible violent behaviour and preventing the situation from becoming violent. Learning how to assess the situation, stay calm and not get involved emotionally was really important for me and strengthened by gaining a legislative and practical knowledge. All theoretical learning was clear and directed on learning how to assess the situation and how to balance the response. It was a tremendously helpful course.
It meant a lot that the trainers commented on how it will be more difficult in practice — for example how it will be difficult to escort out a person who has an adrenaline rush and is moving. It was a fantastic course.
Learning how to assess the situation, stay calm and not get involved emotionally was really important for me — and strengthened by gaining legislative and practical knowledge.
To learn more about Dynamis training in Positive Handling Strategies for Special Needs or for environments which look after Children with Learning Disabilities, please visit our dedicated webpage at positivehandling.co.uk/send-training.
This guide on conflict management and personal safety is part of our ongoing work with special needs schools and children’s services.
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