School Parents
Welcome to the community of Pace parents.
The school-family relationship is so important to us here at Pace School. You are part of the Pace community. Here, you’ll find answers to questions parents and carers often ask.
Updated Privacy Policy
School Privacy Policy 2024/25Term dates and upcoming events
Term dates 2025/26
Autumn term 2025
Monday 8th September – Autumn term begins
Monday 27th October – Half term break begins
Monday 3rd November – Return to school
Thursday 18th December – Last day of term
Spring term 2026
Tuesday 6th January – Spring term begins
Monday 16th February – Half term break begins
Monday 23rd February – Return to school
Wednesday 4th March – INSET day, school closed
Friday 27th March – Last day of term
Summer term 2026
Monday 13th April – Summer term begins
Monday 4th May – Bank Holiday, school closed
Monday 25th May – Half term break begins
Monday 1st June – Return to school
Wednesday 24th June – INSET day, school closed
Tuesday 21st July – Last day of term
Communication with school
Discussions about your child
Your child’s teacher or conductor can talk to you about your child’s progress. This can be done in person, over the phone or via email within school hours.
Day-to-day issues can be discussed at drop-off or pick-up times. But for a fuller discussion about your child, please make an appointment. Our Headteacher and Deputy Headteachers are also available, by appointment, to talk to you about your child’s schooling or therapy programme.
Parents’ meetings
There are two formal staff-parents’ meetings each year to discuss your child’s progress and agree next steps together. These are in addition to the annual review of your child’s Educational, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
You will also be involved in putting together your child’s Personal Learning Goals (PLGs) which set out goals and strategies, across all four areas of the Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP). You will be contacted well in advance of these meetings to choose a time that works for you.
Day-to-day communications
We use a service called ParentMail to send out letters, updates and regular communications via email . There is a ParentMail app which you can download to your smartphone. You can also receive text messages via ParentMail, which will primarily be used in emergency situations such as a school closure.
Emergency contacts and information
Before your child starts at Pace, it’s useful for us to have as much information as possible about them. Copies of medical or educational reports will be retained on your child’s file, with your permission, and will remain confidential. You have access to all written records about your child, on request.
At the start of each school year, we’ll send home a form called Essential Child Information. It’s very important that you update this and send it back. If the information changes during the year, please let us know as soon as possible.
Our school nursing team will also issue forms annually, so we have updated information about your child’s medication.
Assessments
Assessments
At Pace, we take a holistic approach to supporting every child’s progress, looking at their development across academic, physical, communication, and therapeutic areas. We combine different methods, including observational, summative, and self-assessment, to build a clear picture of each child’s learning, which is monitored daily, periodically, and annually through structured cycles. Using our secure digital platform, Evidence for Learning, we record and celebrate even the smallest steps of progress. With highly trained staff and ongoing development of our practices, we ensure every child receives the very best support to reach their full potential.
Academic Attainment and Progress with Steps
At Pace school, children’s academic progress is assessed using bespoke academic assessment frameworks that are structured in ‘Steps’ to see progression. All children in Semi-formal and Formal pathways are assessed using ‘Steps’ three times during the academic year at the end of each term, and children in the Pre-formal pathway are assessed bi-annually in January and July. All children are assessed using a Continuum of Skills Development (CSD) on an EFL (Evidence for Learning) platform.
CSD consists of four areas:
- Prompting
- Maintenance
- Generalisation
- Fluency
Each area is scored between 1 and 10, and then the points are converted into percentages to show progress.
Annual Goals and Personal Learning Goals ( PLGs)
At Pace school, we also use annual goals and PLGs to assess children progress. They are designed to outline progressive steps toward achieving the outcomes specified in children Education, Health, and Care Plans (EHCP). All annual goals and PLGs are tailored to align with each individual’s aspirations, interests, and areas for development.
Personal Learning Goals (PLGs) Assessment Cycles
Pace Centre conducts two formal assessment cycles for PLGs during the academic year:
Cycle One: The first assessment takes place at the end of January.
Cycle Two: The second assessment is conducted in July.
Measuring Personal Learning Goals (PLGs) Progress: Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS)
To evaluate progress towards PLG goals, Pace Centre uses Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS), which measures outcomes on the following scale:
-1 = Regression
0 = Maintained baseline performance
1 = Some progress made, but below the expected level
2 = Expected progress achieved
3 = Exceeded expectations
Assessment and Evidence Collection
Throughout the year, transdisciplinary team members collate a range of assessment material which is used to conduct a formative assessment against the PLG goals, curricular objectives and agreed EHCP outcomes. The Evidence for Learning (EFL) platform supports this process by enabling the collection and analysis of assessment materials.
Assessment Moderation
Staff CPD meetings are used for assessment moderation to ensure a shared understanding of assessment practices and consistency across the school. These sessions take place at various points during the year, focusing on both PLGs and academic progress. PLGs are moderated within class teams, while academic progress is moderated across Pace teachers.
Parental Engagement
All assessments and newly set PLGs for the following cycle are shared with parents. During parent evenings, teachers or therapists can discuss these, providing an opportunity for collaborative review and planning.
Example
You can see an example in the ‘Links to Assessment Documents’ underneath this section.
Links to assessment documents
Curriculum
Integrated curriculum
Pace School is a special school for children aged 3-16 with neurodisabilities such as cerebral palsy. We believe that every child is entitled to an accessible and exciting education of outstanding quality which meets their unique profile of needs. At Pace School, our skilled teams work together to deliver our integrated curriculum, where therapeutic priorities and subject-based knowledge and skills combine seamlessly to enable success.
Pace integrated curriculum consists of nine different areas, each area is part of the weekly routine in various different aspects. The learning outcomes are differentiated in relation to the group (Pre-Formal/Semi-Formal & Formal learners). All areas of the integrated curriculum feed into our rolling programmes for each subject taught at Pace School over a three and five year cycle.
All the outcomes in the lists will not apply to all the children at Pace, our integrated curriculum is intended to be a bespoke platform for the Teacher, Conductor and Therapists to plan, deliver and evaluate bespoke sessions that meet the needs of all learners.
Class timetables
Curriculum overviews
Learning programmes
Evidence For Learning (EFL)
Evidence for Learning ( EFL)
Evidence for Learning is the platform we use to capture and record your child’s progress and achievements. Through the Family App, parents and carers can view a range of updates, including:
Evidence of your child’s learning
Photos
Videos
Comments and feedback
If you have any questions about using Evidence for Learning, please don’t hesitate to contact the school.
Your Child
School uniform
Children wear a purple polo shirt and ash grey cardigan or sweatshirt. These should be worn with suitable grey, black or navy loose trousers or shorts.
Please label all your child’s school uniform.
Each day, you need to provide a complete change of clothing/uniform for your child.
In addition:
- Long hair should be tied back
- No jewellery or expensive clothing
- Studs only for children with pierced ears
- Parents and carers attending with children should wear clothes that allow freedom of movement, ideally free from buttons, zips and jewellery
- Indoor shoes only to be worn inside the classrooms
What to bring to school
Please send your child to school with the normal equipment they might use. This could include:
- special eating utensils
- walking aids
- hearing aid equipment
- glasses
- a change of clothes
- outdoor coat, depending on the weather
Please ensure all items are clearly labelled with your child’s name.
Medication including inhalers should be provided in a plastic container, clearly labelled with your child’s name, the date and dosage on the pharmacy label. Give this directly to a member of staff in your child’s group, so it can be kept safe with the nursing team.
The school day
School starts at 9am and ends at 3pm, Monday to Friday. Your child must arrive on time for the start of school, and should be collected promptly at the end of the day.
Lunch
Lunch
Lunch is an important time to develop your child’s eating and drinking skills – but your child’s nutrition and safety are our top priorities.
Please tell us if you child has any food allergies or specific dietary requirements.
Packed lunch
If you child eats finger food, you should provide a healthy packed lunch. This may include sandwiches, a piece of fruit and yoghurt, in a labelled container. Chocolate and crisps should be kept to a minimum, and wholemeal bread is a better choice than white bread.
You should also provide drinks and healthy snacks for your child each day. Specific foods or drinks may be requested by your child’s team for learning and/or safety reasons.
Hot meals
Children can have hot meals, we encourage parents to send meals that your child can eat safely. We may ask that your child bring a hot meal to develop their skills with utensils. We can heat up lunches in a microwave here. Please provide full instructions for the safe re-heating of food that you provide.
All lunches prepared by lunchtime staff will be re-heated according to health and hygiene guidelines. You will need to sign a consent form to give us permission to prepare your child’s meal.
Modified diets
If your child has a modified diet, such as blended hot meals, please provide these in the right consistency. Lunchtime staff can adapt the occasional ready-meal if absolutely necessary. We can also provide thickener in powder form for your child.
Allergy alert
Due to a severe allergy, small orange fruit such as satsumas, clementines and tangerines are not permitted in school. Large orange fruits such as jaffa oranges are fine.
We are also a latex free school.
Getting to and from school
Where to drop off/pick up
The drop off area at Pace School is ONLY for use when you are dropping off or collecting your child. At all other times, please use the car park.
Collection by another person
If someone else, such as a carer or someone from another organisation, is collecting your child, please notify staff in writing in advance, giving the person’s full name and contact details. Anyone collecting a child from Pace will be asked to sign the transport file.
Your responsibility
Once a staff member has handed your child over to you, your child’s safety, actions and whereabouts are your responsibility. If you bring your child’s siblings to drop off or pick up, please ensure they stay in the waiting areas with you and do not enter classrooms or make too much noise. Children are not allowed into the kitchen unsupervised.
LEA transport
It is our responsibility to notify the transport department when we cancel your child’s attendance for a reason such as a snow day.
Absences
If your child is ill, call 01296 392739 for Coventon Road and 01296 614287 Wendover Road by 8:45am to report their absence. You can log into ParentMail to send a secure message.
When your child returns to school, please send a letter or a note about their absence in the home/school Liaison Book.
If your child needs to be off for something like a hospital appointment, please let your child’s Team Leader know as soon as possible.
Don’t forget to alert your transport provider, for all absences.
For other absences, we only authorise leave in exceptional circumstances. Please book your holidays outside term time. If you wish to take your child out of school, please make the request with enough time for us to consider this carefully. We must inform your Local Authority of any extended absences.
Health and infection
By working together, we can minimise health problems at Pace. Please note our health guidelines:
- Your child cannot return to school after an infectious disease until a doctor has declared them free from infection. Please inform Pace if your child has an infectious disease.
- If your child has diarrhoea and/or vomiting, they should not return to school until 48 hours after the most recent episode.
- If your child has a raised temperature, they should not return to school until their temperature is normal.
- Please check your child’s hair regularly for head lice. Advise staff immediately if you suspect your child has head lice (this will be kept confidential). Your child must be treated before returning to school.
- Cuts or open sores should be covered with an appropriate dressing.
- Please tell your child’s teacher or conductor personally or in writing, on arrival at school if you child has had an injury at home. Please also let us know about any physical complaint, such as pulled muscle. We will also need to know any action your or your GP have taken.
Medication
Wherever possible, please administer your child’s medication yourself. However, we know many Pace children will require medication during a school day. So we can administer medication – but we must have prior written content and direction, in line with our medication policy.
Behaviour management
Praise and behaviour management
Children thrive in an ordered, safe environment where everyone knows what’s expected of them. We work hard to create an atmosphere of encouragement, where children develop self-confidence and self-esteem.
We reward good behaviour and special effort with a daily merit system. Termly assemblies are held where children receive certificates for achieving their own milestones.
Physical intervention
Some children at Pace require physical facilitation to help them gain motor skills.
In terms of behaviour management, we rarely need to use physical intervention. If it is required, we use physical intervention only as a last resort. This is in line with DfE advice. We ensure the risk of injury to pupils and staff is minimal.
Bullying
Bullying is very rare at Pace, due to the age and specific needs of our children. However, bullying of any kind is unacceptable in our school and we deal with incidences promptly and effectively.
Child protection
All our pupils have a fundamental right to be protected from harm – and we have a pastoral responsibility for the children and young people in our school. The safety of each child is of paramount importance and overrides all other considerations.
If you are concerned about a child – or if an allegation has been made to you against a member of staff or volunteer – you should immediately report this to our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), Richard Smith (Headteacher). In Richard’s absence, report to the Deputy DSL’s Fin O’Driscoll or Shleena Lee.
Feedback, concerns and complaints
At Pace we are open to receiving your feedback at any time, Ofsted offer the opportunity for you to feedback on how happy your child and how well the school supports them.
We do our very best for your child. But we know there may be times when people want to raise concerns or complaints. We take this very seriously. See below our complaints procedure.
How to lodge your complaint
Where you feel school have been unable to resolve the complaint or you feel it serious to, you can lodge a complaint with Ofsted at:
Ofsted, Piccadilly Gate, Store Street, Manchester M1 2WS
Tel: 0300 123 1231