Family Support & Pupil Support
For useful information and help for Parents/Carers, please click here: Helpful Information for Parent/Carer Support
Mrs Sue Edwards
Home School Link Worker
Bedenham Primary School
My name is Sue Edwards and I am the Home School Link Worker at Bedenham Primary School. I have worked at Bedenham for 17 years in a variety of positions and have spent the past 8 years in my current role.
Mrs Leanne East
Home School Link Worker
Holbrook Primary School
My name is Leanne East and I am the Home School Link Worker at Holbrook Primary School. I have worked at Holbrook for 14 years, starting in the classroom before moving into the ELSA role and finally finishing off in my current position.
As Home School Link Workers, we play an important part in the relationship between home and school in supporting families on a wide variety of issues. We work closely with class teachers, colleagues and outside agencies to help others to understand children’s needs as well as those of parents and carers.
Our aims are:
- to promote good attendance and work alongside families to achieve this;
- to enable parents and children to discuss concerns or worries in a safe and secure environment;
- to signpost parents to relevant/appropriate services and to provide assistance to families in need;
- to ensure the wellbeing of both children and parents is at the forefront of everything I do.
We have an ‘open door’ policy for parents and will make ourselves available to meet at the earliest opportunity. Please contact us via the Bedenham or Holbrook school office, or you will find us at the school gates most mornings. We recognise that everyone experiences challenges in life and there are times when additional support can be beneficial. We believe in working with a strengths-based approach and will listen without judgement to try and identify the tools and strategies that can be used to manage and move forward.
As Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads, we work closely with the Designated Safeguarding Lead for each school. We attend Child Protection and Child in Need meetings held by Children’s Services, representing the school and contributing to decision making and planning. Throughout the process, we aim to support the family to understand the expectations of these plans.
We are both very approachable and always happy to listen.
Mrs Sue Doole
Emotional Literacy Support Assistant
Bedenham Primary School
Hello, my name is Sue Doole - I am the Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) at Bedenham Primary School.
We know that for children to achieve academic success, and have the resilience to embrace all opportunities and experiences, they need to feel safe and have their social and emotional needs met. I am here to support the emotional wellbeing of all the children at our school.
As an ELSA, I understand the barriers to learning that some children face and deliver carefully planned programmes to support children to cope with life’s challenges. These could include recognising and managing feelings, dealing with anxieties and worries, building self-esteem and coping with bereavement. Most sessions are delivered on a one-to-one basis, but at times, there may be group sessions for things such as developing friendship skills. An ELSA is not there to ‘fix’ problems but to help the children find their own solutions and to teach strategies the children can use.
We are proud to have a number of children whose parents are in the Armed Forces. We recognise that being part of a forces family can pose unique challenges and, to provide connections and support, we run a fortnightly club for our Service Children.
We also have a number of children who care for others or themselves within their home, we provide a fortnightly club for Young Carers – the aim is to support their emotional wellbeing and reduce barriers to achieving academic success.
If you have any questions, please feel free to come and have a chat, I am always happy to help.
Mrs Sasha Dawkins
Emotional Literacy Support Assistant
Holbrook Primary School
Hello, my name Is Sasha Dawkins and I am the Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) and a Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead at Holbrook Primary School. I have held many positions in our Federation, including being a Governor and a Higher Level Teaching Assistant before I qualified as an ELSA.
I help to support the children’s mental health and emotional wellbeing by building strong, trusting relationships and providing a safe space to support their emotional development and to teach them strategies to help them cope with life’s challenges. This helps children to feel happy and safe in school so that they can focus on achieving their full potential.
I am able to help the children in many different areas, such as building resilience and self-esteem, managing anger and developing social skills. The ELSA sessions give the children an opportunity to talk through any difficulties they may be facing and help them develop strategies to manage challenging situations. All sessions take place in a calm and friendly environment either 1:1 or as part of a small group.
Holbrook has a number of children with parents in the Armed Forces and I run a Forces Club to help support the children and their families. The group meet bi-weekly so that children can share their unique life experiences and give advice to other pupils who are in the same situation as them. I provide the children with emotional support and advice to help them through difficult circumstances, such as deployment.
I also run a Young Carers Group which meets bi-weekly to provide support for our children who carry out caring responsibilities for another person. I use a specially tailored programme of lessons which teaches the children basic life skills, first aid and how to manage difficult emotions through group discussions and practical lessons.
If you have any questions, please feel free to come and have a chat, I am always happy to help.