In March 2022 Sandside Lodge School was awarded the Move Centre of Excellence for it’s work with functional mobility over the last 5 years since being a Move school. The team are thrilled and it recognises the hard work all staff and students put into The Move Programme.
Read the report here:
What is Move?
Move was established in school in May 2018 and many students are now on the programme.
We achieved our ‘Move Quality Mark’ in March 2019 and are going for re-accreditation in March 2022 – looking towards achieving the Centre of Excellence Award.
Move is an inspiring and motivating programme which can significantly impact our student’s and their family’s lives. It is a student-centered approach that develops independent functional mobility through a six step programme which teaches the skills of sitting, standing, walking and transferring.
These are the 6 steps that will be documented in a students individual ‘Move Passport.’
Assessment – Where is the individual now?
Goal Setting – Where does he/she want to get to?
Task Analysis – What skills are needed to get there?
Prompt Measurement – What support is currently required?
Prompt Adjustment – What support will be needed to achieve the goal?
Teaching the Skills – How do you ensure the individual reaches their goal?
“movement is the primary foundation for learning”
-Move ethos
How is Move delivered in school?
Grace Pickering and Michelle West are the lead Move co-ordinators and trainers in school supported by Catherine Welsh and Hilary Stephenson as Senior Practitioners.
They are supported by Move Advocates across school-we have one in every class.
Move Advocates from each class meet up every half term
When a student is identified as a candidate for the programme they will require an initial assessment meeting with all those involved in their life.
The student and family are at the centre of this and they set the goals they want to achieve which should aim to significantly impact their life.
Here are some examples of goals we have currently:
- To be able to walk independently so that I can play with my friends and little sister.
- To be able to sit on a standard chair with no support so that I can travel by aeroplane on my family holiday.
- To be able to walk up stairs holding onto the bannister so that I can take myself to bed.
It is everyone’s responsibility to work towards a student’s Move goal.
Working towards the goal is not seen as an ‘add on’ to a student’s day, it underpins everything they do. They may work towards their goal of sitting on a chair whilst sitting as a group in circle time or practice their standing against a table as they paint.
The work we do outside our school and what they say about us:
Testimonial of physio supporting mainstream pupil who attends SLS for Aquatic Therapy.
The surgeon has requested that X tries to improve her respiratory function and exercise levels prior to surgery for the optimum benefits, therefore we devised an aquatic plan with MOVE goals for the patient to work towards.
This activity has enabled X to get out of her wheelchair and have a change of position with support of the water. She has been able to move her limbs which she cannot usually do and increase her activity levels.
X has also reported an improvement in her mood and quality of life.
Katy Duncanson
Children’s Physiotherapist
Testimony from physio re MOVE:
The weekly MOVE session provide an excellent opportunity for the children who attend to have an additional physical activity session to work on targeted exercises on a weekly basis.
The physio team have supported these sessions. This has been a great opportunity for team working as physio can advise on the exercises that would specifically benefit each of the children, and how to support them with these.
The children appear to enjoy working in this group setting and the competitive element spurs them on to do their best.
Kate Tebbett
Children’s Physiotherapist
Lancaster Girls’ Grammar School
Senior Practitioner has supported a student to relearn to walk.
Ulverston Victoria High School
Senior Practitioner working with student who attends for MOVE.
St. George’s School, Barrow
A twin sister of one of our younger students attends mainstream. She has Cerebral Palsy and struggles with functional mobility, including stairs and balance.
George Hastwell School
Parent of mainstream child at Ulverston Victorian High School:
I have a 15 year old daughter who has a severe degenerative physical disability including scoliosis, and attends Ulverston Victoria High School, a mainstream school. This school meets her academical needs, but finds it difficult to meet her physical needs.
Since January my daughter has been accessing the hydrotherapy pool at Sandside School once a week, and the benefits for her both physically and mentally have been great. She has very little movement when she is in her wheelchair, and being in the pool gives her the freedom to move and to swim. It also gives her the opportunity to be in an upright position, which she is not able to do out of the pool. We have noticed an improvement in her mobility, and a reduction in her pain.
She loves swimming, and has not been able to access any pool for several years.
Being able to access the hydrotherapy pool has been very beneficial for her mental health, and seeing her happy and smiling has been wonderful.
Parent of mainstream child at Lancaster Girls Grammar:
Without the knowledge and skill of the Move Senior Practitioner my daughter would have found walking again much more difficult.
They understood the need to keep muscles active and healthy even when my daughter was unable to stand or walk. This meant that when her brain reengaged with her body her limbs were ready.
The facilities used across Sandside Lodge School made all the difference to my daughter’s recovery.
Thank you so much.
Student voice from Victoria High School:
Hydro therapy is making improvements for me, mentally and physically. It helps me sleep better because my minds not racing, because I’ve actually done physical activity. I also feel like it has improved my breathing, my lungs are stronger which is helpful for my back surgery. Using the hydro pool also helps a lot with my back pain, it eases it and I get a proper stretch when I am in the water which is something I cannot do anywhere else.
It also makes me feel happier because I feel like things are being done for me and im not just waiting for my back surgery, I am doing something to help get it done. Also I am happy because in the pool I am doing exercise.
I wish I could use it more often than I am because it is great.
Student voice from Lancaster Girls’ Grammar
The support I had has been amazing and I don’t know what I’d have done without it.
I suddenly couldn’t walk in April 2020 and was diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder. My brain doesn’t send the right messages to my body.
By practicing functional movements throughout the day my brain and body started to connect again.
I don’t need a wheelchair now but I do use a mobility scooter as I get leg tremors and limb weakness.
It is wonderful to be living my life again and I hope to go to University in September 2022.
We use MOVE targets throughout the day in everything we do.
MOVE-SCHOOL-powerpoint Flick through our MOVE powerpoint to see how we use every part of school to practise our MOVE targets.
What impact has Move had in school?
13 students in school are currently on the Move programme.
Follow this link to read the report from our Quality Mark, awarded in March 2019. This was awarded in our old building and we are now very lucky to have even more opportunities to develop our student’s functional mobility the building we have been in since 2019. We now incorporate MOVE into our Aquatic Therapy Plans, Rebound Therapy Plans, Soft Play, Experience Room and outdoor learning spaces. MOVE is part of everything we do in school and isn’t a stand alone physiotherapy session.
Move targets are worked on across the school, all day, every day.
Case Studies
Watch Charlie’s amazing Move journey with us…
For more information…
2022: MOVE Circuits is back and better and bigger than ever!
The class staff and MOVE advocates are joined by the lovely Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists to work in a collaborative way to support our students.
MOVE Circuits in action!
Move updates 2021…
We have made some fantastic progress this year and worked super hard at home during lockdown at the beginning of the year.
Look at our hard work below!
Katie has worked extremely hard on her goal to walk more independently. Look at her using the hoop and only holding on with one hand. Katie got a new walking frame in May and has worked hard to learn to put her hands down and hold on to keep herself up right and support her walking forwards and back wards. Well done Katie you are a star!
Some of our MOVErs and shakers around school...
