Our approach

At Bridge House Independent School, we recognise behaviour as a means of communication: often as an expression of unmet need or as a response to adverse experience during a young person’s lifetime.

We recognise that, when students behave in a way that challenges, we need to question why they are behaving in this way, consider the origins of the behaviour and try to understand what the message behind the behaviour might be. Our safe spaces and skilled Pastoral Team are available to all students throughout the school day, providing the on-going support required to learn the skills needed to identify and manage their feelings.

We know how important it is for students to learn to self-regulate, and show respect for both themselves, the people around them and for the school community. As a school, we are committed to providing a learning environment which promotes this, through a clear ethos of respect, integrity, compassion, honesty, and forgiveness; a place where pupils feel safe, happy and included and where they benefit from positive and mutually respectful relationships with other students and staff. To fulfil this commitment, all staff model and promote high standards of conduct and behaviour in conjunction with clear and consistent routines.

Our ethos is underpinned by our curriculum drivers: Content, Creativity, Challenge, Compassion, Co-operation, Control and Community. These are embedded into all aspects of the school day, and form the basis for our rewards scheme which is at the heart of everything our students do.

Students can earn Reward Points during every lesson, by meeting our clearly communicated Classroom Expectations: Reward points enable the students to earn daily, weekly, and termly rewards. In addition, bonus rewards can be collected for showing a commitment to our school ethos.

Whilst our emphasis will always be on recognising and celebrating success at all levels, we also understand that it is important for pupils to recognise the need to make amends when things go wrong. At Bridge House, we take a restorative approach to resolving any difficulties. This enables all parties to hear and understand the perspective of others, coming to a resolution which seeks to restore and repair any breakdown in relationships.

Due to the nature of our school and the broad range of additional needs of our students, we recognise the need to adopt a personalised approach when managing behaviour; however, our underlying principles will pervade and underpin every aspect of our work.