WHO

Welcome to Embedding Excellence.

My name is Tim Connell - I’m a special education consultant, Cognitive Coach and Head of Academic Support in a large high school.

Over my 25 year career I’ve been lucky enough to work with an enormously diverse range of schools on an equally wide range of pastoral and learning issues. Rather than make me an ‘expert’ this experience has highlighted some common themes.

• In many cases, school support occurs in ‘silos’ rather than being a wholistic, team approach.

• In most cases school pastoral and learning support staff are outstanding, dedicated teachers but their level of experience may be variable.

• This variability can result in a lack of consistency across the school: the same issue will be dealt with differently by different staff.

• The frequency and nature of some of these issues is a risk factor for staff attrition, burnout and vicarious trauma.

• The consistency that would preclude much of this risk is always underpinned by contextual knowledge and structured responses for each issue - ‘I know what this issue looks like and I know how to respond’.
  

  I work with school pastoral and learning support teams together to build contextual knowledge and fluent, structured responses to a range of common scenarios including.

• School Refusal

• Individual Planning and support for common disabilities - ADHD, autism, Specific Learning Disorders

• Difficult parent meetings

• Supporting students with mental health diagnoses including return to school post hospitalisation.

• Bullying and consistent anti - bullying policies and processes

• Case management for students with complex issues that are impacting across multiple domains (Tier 3)

• Classroom management