Deaf Pupil Provision

Welcome to the Deaf Pupil Provision (DPP) 

The DPP (Deaf Pupil Provision) is a provision within Philip Southcote School, which offers support for deaf students who also have additional SEND needs.

The DPP are committed to providing support for our students to ensure they can access the curriculum alongside their peers. We have a Total Communication approach and can offer support orally, in Sign Supported English or in British Sign Language, working with our students to provide the right communication and language support to meet their individual needs. 

STAFF

• Academic Progress.
• Physical and Emotional Wellbeing.
• Enrichment and skills for life.
• The belief that a student's listening skill should not be a barrier to their ability to learn and achieve their potential.

Our curriculum provides a  wide range of subjects to ALL students including; Maths, English, Science, PSHE, ICT, Art, Food Technology, RE, Humanities, Outdoor Education, Sports Leaders, Performing Arts, D of E and Sixth Form.

Classrooms have Soundfield Systems to enable all students to be able to hear as clearly at the back of the classroom as they can at the front. Our school is fully wheelchair accessible and we have toilets with hoisting systems if required. Our dedicated sensory room supports students to improve their physical coordination, motor development, emotional wellbeing and offers a range of sound activated, cause and effect activities. We work hard to ensure our physical environment is fully inclusive for our deaf students; all fire Alarms are fitted with the red flashing lights and classrooms have carpet and blinds to improve the acoustics for our students.

We encourage all our students to be independent and to develop an understanding of how to look after and maintain their own equipment. These are all vital skills for our students to be able to look after themselves and their equipment outside of the school environment. Where needed staff support students to check their personal listening devices.

We recognise our students as individuals and this is reflected in the nature of the classroom support they receive. Some will require Communication Support Workers to sit alongside them to support, while others will need the CSW to interpret the class using BSL or SSE. Students will also benefit from our 1:1 sessions with DPP staff or with our Teacher of the Deaf; this will be individually or in small groups.

Some students may benefit from Radio Aids which are provided and maintained by Surrey County Council. This provides our students with direct input into their Processors or Hearing Aids and helps to overcome the impact of the background noise.

Students are fully integrated into both the academic and social life of the Philip Southcote Community. They attend all classes with their peers and have a variety of sporting opportunities to take part in as well as residential school trips. Our students attend work experience and in KS4 participate in the college link courses provided to the whole year group.

All students at Philip Southcote have access to British Sign Language sessions in a relaxed and fun environment to gain a valuable skill and also to promote an understanding of deaf awareness. We are fortunate at Philip Southcote to have trained ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistants) staff to support the wellbeing of our students, this provides a fully inclusive approach that students can access with minimal additional adults.

Our Specialist SALT (Speech and Language Therapist)  has many years of experience and expertise in working with Deaf students. We work closely with the SALT to enable our students to use their existing communication skills effectively and to incorporate this into their classes and literacy sessions.

All the staff at Philip Southcote have regular updates in Deaf Awareness to maximise their knowledge of how best to work with our deaf students and the wider community. We are also proud of our Headteacher and other staff members who have undertaken the BSL Level 1 qualification and continue to study for BSL Level 2.  

Please click to view our Audiology Policy which is found in our Key Information - School Policies Folder