FAQ

No, we are not a school. We are an intervention provision and we work closely with schools and
authorities to provide support and extra tuition for young people. We provide a varied curriculum
to promote engagement, personal, social development and progression.

Students attend for three days per week on average. We are authorised to provide programmes
of up to 15 hours per week.

We have a wide range of staff here at Poles APart. We have trained and qualified teachers. We
also have qualified outdoor instructors, therapists and caterers. All of our staff complete an in-depth and focused induction programme and many of our staff have worked in the education
and special educational needs sector for a number of years.

Our programmes are varied and we spend time talking to the students, parents, carers and
schools to create programmes which suit the needs of each individual. We provide certificates
such as AQA, John Muir Award, National Indoor Climbing Achievement Scheme and many
others. We also work alongside the national curriculum and provide tuition towards GCSEs.

Yes we do provide food. We know how important food is and we do not charge extra for this.
Sensory snacks, packed lunches and hot meals are a standard part of our day.

Transport is normally organised by the authorities and the schools, however in special cases we
can provide transport directly from Poles APart. Please contact us for further information.

We operate over four centres, which are all based in or around Plymouth. We also run many
offsite trips. We invite all persons involved with referrals to visit at a pre-arranged, scheduled
time.

We are heavily regulated and we have many systems in place to make sure that all of our
programmes are as safe as possible.

Our on-site designated safeguarding lead, along with the safeguarding team, works to make sure that all concerns are logged and actioned.

Our primary job is care work and we make sure that all of the individual needs of the students
are catered for and staff are aware of and trained to deal with multiple situations.

Our buildings and locations are all risk assessed and are adapted to be fit for purpose, to
provide the best possible facilities.

We have undergone multiple audits and welcome more in the future. This helps us to be at the
top of the game.

The management team work tirelessly everyday to make sure that all programmes and
processes are structured, planned and justified.

Each programme is specific. We work with individuals on a one to one basis however we also
work in small groups with high staffing ratios. Students are grouped with several factors in mind,
including; personalities, learning levels and abilities.

Poles APart work collaboratively with schools to design bespoke packages for individuals, the
price will be discussed and agreed during this process.

Please refer to our safeguarding policy.

We are not OFSTED registered. As an intervention service, OFSTED registration is not a
requirement.

We are on the Plymouth Alternative Education Framework and we have recently done a Quality
Assurance for Torbay. Schools are always welcome to carry out their own quality assurance
checks and safeguarding audits and are able to have copies of our previous quality assurance
reports should they wish.

We understand that this is a concern of many schools and therefore are able to provide the
documents needed for their own OFSTED inspections. We have already used this procedure
with a number of schools.