The Boarding Routine is as follows:

3.30 p.m. School Day ends and Boys go to their Unit.

3.30 - 4.15 p.m. Signing Out for Evening Activities and Unit Meeting.

4.15 - 6.00 p.m. First Activity Period.

6.00 - 6.30 p.m. Tea.

6.30 - 8.00 p.m. Second Activity Period.

8.00 p.m. Boys return to their Unit.

8.00 - 10.00 p.m. Unit Based - preparing for bed and settling down.

10.00 - 8.00 a.m. Unit Staff go off duty. Night Attendant on duty.

8.00 a.m. Unit Staff come on duty.

8.00 - 8.30 a.m. Rise.

8.30 - 9.00 a.m. Breakfast.

9.00 a.m. School day starts.

These are offered to all pupils after school hours. There are a range of activities offered which are specifically geared to the aim of securing the personal and social development of each individual. Some of the activities offered include; Football, Swimming, Art and Craft, Pool, Computers, Indoor Games, Trips out, Model Making, Gardening, as well as many others.

In addition, all the Leavers are encouraged to participate in the usual range of social activities engaged in by the majority of all young people of their age within the local community, e.g. Youth Clubs, Discos, Sports Clubs, Youth Organisations, etc.

The Birds Unit is spacious, pleasantly furnished and well maintained. It has five main sections - the dormitory, alcoves, the lounge, the bathroom and the middle area. There is one dormitory area for up to 6 boys that is partitioned to provide a degree of privacy and individual space. In addition, there are 7 alcoves - 1 triple and 6 doubles. These are smaller more individual bed spaces and are seen as a privilege within the Unit which the boys work towards gaining. All boys are encouraged to personalise their areas with posters, photographs and other personal items. The large lounge is well-equipped with a pool table, games computers, stereo, cable television and other leisure equipment. The Unit has 1 bathroom with 3 showers. 1 bath. 3 toilets and 5 washbasins. The middle area has an additional 6 washbasins and this area is used at certain times as a communal area to bring the group together.

The Birds Unit operates a simple behaviour management system based on Traffic Lights. This operates on a daily basis and focuses on the individual needs and abilities of each boy. The system is flexible and designed to recognise and emphasise the positive aspects of each child’s behaviour and the areas in which they are achieving as much as possible. At the end of each evening and morning session, the staff on duty write comments for each child looking at the following areas :

• the way they get on with other boys
• keeping to school and unit rules
• their attitude to adults
• following unit routines
• achieving their personal targets - these are individual and related to each boy’s needs.

After school each day, the boys are told their status and all the comments that have been written are read out to them. In this way, boys are made aware of the positive and negative aspects of their behaviour and how these relate to their status. The status’s are Green - doing really well, High Amber, Amber - doing okay, Low Amber, Red - needs to improve. Each status has different privileges - amount of pocket money allowed, different bedtimes, choice of activities etc. A boy who is Green for 3 consecutive days is made Special and receives further privileges. A boy who is Red for 3 consecutive days is put on a Sub-system and he is given more individual input and his behaviour is commented on over shorter periods of time.

All staff make every effort to recognise effort and achievement. In the Birds Unit this is achieved in the following ways:

• staff giving praise and positive reinforcement through the comments in the Traffic Light System.
• contact with home through phone calls and letters to inform parents of special achievements.
• Lower School Assemblies which are held on a fortnightly basis and where achievement in the unit and the classroom is recognised and praised.
• certificates and awards presented at the end of each half term.

It is expected that parents will provide some pocket money for their son to spend each week. There are no set upper or lower limits and amounts should be based on what each individual family can afford. It is expected that all boys should hand their pocket money in to a member of staff on duty. This is to enable staff to monitor the amount of money being spent and prevents money being lost or stolen. Pocket money is given out on a daily basis after school and is related to each boy’s status:

The Jets Unit is spacious, pleasantly furnished and well maintained. It has six main sections - the dormitory, alcoves, the lounge, 2 bathrooms and the middle area. There is one dormitory area for up to 6 boys which is partitioned to provide a degree of privacy and individual space. In addition, there are 7 alcoves - 1 single and 6 doubles. These are smaller more individual bed spaces and are seen as a privilege within the Unit which the boys work towards gaining. All boys are encouraged to personalise their areas with posters, photographs and other personal items. The large lounge is well-equipped with a pool table, games computers, music centre, cable television and other leisure equipment. The Unit’s first bathroom has 3 showers, 1 bath, 3 toilets and 5 washbasins. The second bathroom has 3 showers and 1 toilet. The middle area has an additional 6 washbasins and this area is used at certain times as a communal area to bring the group together.

The Jets Unit operates a simple behaviour management system based on Gold, Silver and Bronze status’s. This operates on a weekly basis - Monday pm to Friday am and focuses on the individual needs and abilities of each boy. The system is flexible and designed to recognise and emphasise the positive aspects of each child’s behaviour and the areas in which they are achieving as much as possible. At the end of each evening and morning session, the staff on duty write comments for each child looking at the following areas :

• hygiene and care of bed space
• their relationships with and attitude to adults and peers
• keeping to school and unit rules
• following unit routines
• achieving their personal targets - these are individual and related to each boy’s needs.

The points are added up on Friday and the status for the following week is decided - Gold, High Silver, Silver, Low Silver or Bronze. The status can be upgraded if individuals have made a particular effort to achieve their personal targets. The status’s awarded have different privileges - different bedtimes, choice of activities, mobility etc. A boy who is Gold for 3 consecutive weeks is made Special and receives further privileges. A boy who is not achieving on the usual behaviour system is put on a Sub-system and he is given more individual input and his behaviour is commented on over shorter periods of time.

All staff make every effort to recognise effort and achievement. In the Jets Unit this is achieved in the following ways:

• staff giving praise and positive reinforcement through the comments in the Gold, Silver, Bronze System.
• contact with home through phone calls and letters to inform parents of special achievements.
• Lower School Assemblies which are held on a fortnightly basis and where achievement in the unit and the classroom is recognised and praised.
• certificates and awards presented at the end of each half term.

The Phoenix Unit is spacious, pleasantly furnished and well maintained. It is an open plan unit with a lounge, kitchen and bed space areas. The unit’s lounge is well equipped with a pool table, games computers, music centre, television, video and other leisure equipment. The unit’s kitchen/dining area enables the pupils to participate in a basic life skills programme and the boys prepare their own breakfast each day and their tea once a week. Each boy is encouraged to personalise his bed space with posters, photographs and other personal items. The unit has one bathroom that has 4 toilets, 3 washbasins, 1 shower and 1 bath.

There is no formal Behaviour Management System in operation in the Phoenix Unit. However, the boys are encouraged to be responsible for their own actions. Individual comments are written in the Unit Logging System and these are discussed with the boys at the daily unit meeting or on an individual basis. The behaviour management strategy within the unit is based on a consistent, firm and flexible approach and a great deal of emphasis is placed on recognising and promoting the positive aspects of each boy’s behaviour. A boy who is not achieving well in the unit may be put on an individual system to give him more support that would focus on his particular needs.

All staff make every effort to recognise effort and achievement. In the Phoenix Unit this is achieved in the following ways:

• staff giving praise and positive reinforcement through the daily unit meetings.
• contact with home through phone calls and letters to inform parents of special achievements.
• Upper School Assemblies which are held at the end of each half term and awards and certificates are presented.

All the boys are expected to take part in routine domestic chores to help clean and maintain the unit. These will include such tasks as - keeping their own room tidy, washing up after meals, hoovering etc.

The Oaks has 4 bedrooms and can accommodate up to 7 boys in 1 single and 3 double bedrooms. The boys are encouraged to personalise their rooms with posters, photographs and other personal items. The Unit has a bathroom upstairs and a toilet downstairs. The house has a kitchen which enables pupils to participate in a basic life skills programme and the boys prepare their own breakfast each day and their tea once a week. The unit is well-equipped with leisure equipment - television, video, stereo, a games computer room and other leisure equipment. The House is pleasantly furnished, well-maintained and provides a homely environment.

There is no formal Behaviour Management System in operation in the Unit. However, the boys are encouraged to be responsible for their own actions. Individual comments are written in the Unit Logging System and these are discussed with the boys at the daily unit meeting or on an individual basis. The behaviour management strategy within the unit is based on a consistent, firm and flexible approach and a great deal of emphasis is placed on recognising and promoting the positive aspects of each boy’s behaviour. A boy who is not achieving well in the unit may be put on an individual system to give him more support that would focus on his particular needs.

All staff make every effort to recognise effort and achievement. In the Oaks Unit this is achieved in the following ways:

• staff giving praise and positive reinforcement through the daily unit meetings.
• contact with home through phone calls and letters to inform parents of special achievements.
• Upper School Assemblies which are held at the end of each half term and awards and certificates are presented.

It is expected that parents will provide some pocket money for their son to spend each week. There are no set upper or lower limits and amounts should be based on what each individual family can afford. Boys are not expected to hand their pocket money in, but they should tell staff how much money they are bringing in. This enables the staff to monitor the amount of money being spent and to encourage the boys to budget their money wisely.

All clothes that the boys bring into school should be labelled or clearly marked. Washing goes to the laundry each morning and clean clothes are returned after school. Parents can choose for all washing to be done at home and if this is the case they should inform the Unit Staff and ensure that they send in adequate amounts of clothes for the week. Parents should be aware that if washing goes to the school laundry it will be tumble dried and they should consider this when buying items of clothing. Those boys who wish to do their own laundry may do so in the school laundry when staff supervision and support is available.

As part of an independent living programme, when boys go into the Oaks Unit they are shown how to use the washing machine and tumble drier and they are then responsible for and encouraged to do their own washing and ironing. Alternatively, they may take their washing home at the end of each week.

Child Care staff who are sleeping-in come on duty at 10pm. This member of staff supervises the Jets unit until at least 11 pm or until all the boys have settled. After this time, this member of staff is based in the sleeping-in room directly outside the Jets Unit